Communication and Conflict Resolution

Communication and Conflict Resolution
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Institution

Communication and Conflict Resolution
Team Charter Recommendations
Interprofessional teams for their effectiveness need to operate under set norms or ground rules. These standards are essential as they provide a guideline towards the behavior during an interaction. Depending on the nature or type of the people involved, ground rules of a particular team may vary slightly or significantly from another. There are two primary methods of establishing ground rules which include;
Group Discussion and Consensus.
This is the effective method of establishing ground rules since all the involved individuals participate in listing guidelines as well as their expectations in the team. The list of shared expectations and guidelines help to provide a powerful guide for a conducive working environment. Also, the five common team dysfunctions which include the absence of trust, lack of commitment, fear of conflict, inattentive to results and avoiding accountability are shattered (Shapiro et al., 2005).
Listing Commonly Used Ground Rules.
The method involves listing ground rules which are commonly used then ask for more ground rules. When a member suggests a rule, and is agreed among the other member, it is added to the list of ground rules. This method is effective where time is limited as it helps in saving time discussing already known rules (Shapiro et al., 2005). Since the team will be composed of the different individual’s personality, experience and expectations can be a mortar that holds the team together or a chisel that rip the team apart.

Having different expectations and distinct personality which are not engaged with each other can result in team ineffectiveness and conflicts. There is the need for the team to understand and engage each other properly in eliminating conflicts. Conflicts arise from emotions thus the effective way of mitigating interprofessional conflict is through tending these emotions. Shapiro et al., 2005 suggest five ways in avoiding conflict in teams which involve active listening, finding value in what teammates say or do, respecting autonomy, acknowledging status and choosing a fulfilling role (Shapiro et al., 2005).
For the success of the team, a team leader is a vital component thus members of the team will have to choose a leader of their own and not imposed on them. The first and effective approach is to ask who wants to be the team leader and in case more than one express interest in the leadership role then members will choose the best out of the willing members. In case the leader fails to perform according to the member’s expectations then they have the mandate to tell him or her to step down and a more effective leader chosen.
Communication and Collaboration Strategies
For effective interprofessional collaboration, there are four basic practices which have to adhere. First is the upholding of values and ethics which encourages nurses to work with individuals of other professions to uphold an ambiance of reciprocated respect and common values (O’Brien, 2013). A second practice is encouraging each to know his or her responsibility which is vital in defining professional boundaries during the collaboration thus making it easy to communicate expertise and responsibilities to other professionals of a different discipline. The third practice is maintaining proper communication and demonstrate the willingness to work together with other professionals towards a given objective. Finally, is promoting team and teamwork which focuses on shared problem solving and shared decision making (O’Brien, 2013). Although a face-to-face interaction is usually preferred in interprofessional collaboration, there is communication technology offers an alternative from face-to-face collaboration. Alternative communication technology involves the use of telephone, mailing, texting and most recently the use of social media. From video conferencing to just a simple Whatsapp group, professionals can easily interact just like in the face-to-face interaction. Although some aspects attributed to a face-to-face communication may be conspicuously missing in using communication technology, it provides an efficient and convenient way of collaboration.
Communication technology, however, has its merits and limitations in the whole aspect of promoting interprofessional collaboration. While communication technologies such as telephone, mailing, and texting are fast to disseminate the intended message the methods lack confidentiality as the message may unknowingly end up getting into wrong hands. Also, methods like texting lack personal touch and the emotions of a person can’t be detected in the text thus a person may agree on an issue yet deep down in his heart he or she disagrees on the same(Sarah et al., 2016). On the other hand, the conventional method of face-to-face interactions has its fair share of pros and cons. It requires much time to be conveyed and proves costly compared to the use of communication technology. However, it guarantees confidentiality, personal touch, and concrete solutions are reached using this method of communication. Therefore, in case of an urgent issue which needs to be handled by the professionals most of the communication technologies can be used. However, in the event of a confidential message and serious issue which need in-depth discussion, the face-to-face interaction proves to be more effective (Sarah et al., 2016).

References
O’Brien, J (2013) Interprofessional collaboration. https://lms.rn.com/getpdf.php/1892.pdf Accessed 8th Jan 2018Shapiro, S. L., Carlson, L. E., Astin, J. A., & Freedman, B. (2006). Mechanisms of mindfulness. Journal of clinical psychology, 62(3), 373-386.
Shrader, S., Kostoff, M., Shin, T., Heble, A., Kempin, B., Miller, A., & Patykiewicz, N. (2016). Using communication technology to enhance interprofessional education simulations. American journal of pharmaceutical education, 80(1), 13.