How and why emotions matter in interprofessional healthcare

Abstract

Institutional theory draws attention to organisational rules-of-thumb that guide individual action and legitimacy - this includes the use of emotion. Within medicine, emotion is largely underemphasised. The introduction of interprofessional practice (IPP) poses an under-explored potential challenge to these rules-of-thumb. Drawing on Foucault, this article examines: 1) the emotional discourse in tweets from member-based organisations for healthcare practitioners; 2) themes in interviews and a focus group with practitioners-in-training. While the tweets largely illustrated the illegitimacy of emotion within healthcare, the practitioners-in-training indicated the importance of emotions and emotion work to teamwork. These findings suggest a 'cultural clash' and demonstrate that emotions matter in IPP.