Resources: Team Building
Relevant Standards
- CMS: NA
- TJC: LD.03.01.01, EP 7, Communication PFA
References & Tools
- Civility, Respect, and Engagement in the Workplace (CREW) is a VA-wide culture change initiative. First launched in 2005 by the VHA National Center for Organization Development (NCOD) in response to employee feedback that low levels of civility affected their level of job satisfaction, it has since been utilized by over 1,200 VA workgroups to establish a culture of respect and civility in their organization. [Note: Referenced as a “proven’ team building approach in JCCAP Training Module #8: Focus on Pateient Safety, Slide 16],
- See also 2012 SPHCC Review TJC Article on CREW (below): The Crew Initiative: Veterans Health Administration Civility Program Improves Safety and Quality (with Full Text article link)
- The CREW Video or CREW.mp4 – YouTube.webloc
- TeamSTEPPS®: Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety -from the Agency for Helathcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) – TeamSTEPPS® is an evidence-based teamwork system aimed at optimizing patient outcomes by improving communication and teamwork skills among health care professionals. It includes a comprehensive set of ready-to-use materials and a training curriculum to successfully integrate teamwork principles into any health care system. [Note: Referenced as a “proven’ team building approach in JCCAP Training Module #8: Focus on Pateient Safety, Slide 16]
- How to Grow Effective Teams, And Run Meetings that Aren’t a Waste of Time by Linda Turner and Ron Turner © Ends of the Earth Learning Group 1998
- Chapter One: Grow Teams, Don’t Build Them. Every team is more like a garden than a construction project. What works for one team won’t work for all. Over time teams will develop and mature.
- Chapter Two: Creating a Team Charter. How will the team know if it is making things better or worse? Where are team members supposed to find the time to meet? What is the sunset clause for the team?
- Chapter Three, How Will Decisions Be Made? Consensus decision making and other decision modes. Consensus means everyone was “heard.” It doesn’t mean that everyone gets their first choice. Sometimes teams will be used to gather input, but not to make a decision.
- Chapter Four, Defining Roles: Facilitators, Team Leaders, and Hybrids of Every Sort. How do Team Leaders differ from Facilitators? Team members have more power and therefore more responsibility than is traditionally the case.
- Chapter Five, The First Meeting, Setting up the Ground Rules. This is where you can make or break your team. Make sure everyone understands their new roles.
- Chapter Six, How to Deal with Pitfalls; The Nuts and Bolts of Running Meetings. What do I do when I get stuck?
- References and Copying Rights
- Understanding & Improving Teamwork (incl TOP)x by Miles & Associates. Includes 1-page summary of Team Operating Procedures (TOP)
- Team Chartering: #TeamChartering
- Team Plan or Chartering Guidelines (PDF)[HTML]1212
- Chartering the Team (28-pg PDF overview)1212
- Sample Team Chartering Form by Richard Mettler
Required Written Documents
- None
** Additional Clarifications & Compliance Strategies (Premier)**
[private Membership premier]
The CREW Initiative: Veteran’s Health Administration Civility Program Improves Safety and Quality [Ftxt] [PEARL: LDR, GB, HR, StEd] The Source Jan 2012, Pg 10, Vol 10, # 2
The Civility, Respect, and Engagement in the Workplace (CREW) initiative is “a cultural change initiative overseen by the National Center for Organization Development” (NCOD – a VHA organization dedicated to supporting a healthy workplace). It was designed to “improve the work climate through more civil and respectful interactions”. “The CREW program empowers staff to not only have difficult conversations but build trust with each other as a result of these conversations,” It began in 2005 in response to VHA staff concerns about job satisfaction, safety and quality of care they felt were related to low levels of civility. CREW is a completely voluntary program and this is thought to be a critical key to its success. It begins with a two-day training of designated organization staff that will serve as facilitators. These facilitators then meet regularly over a six-month period with voluntary but committed work groups and teams to improve the program’s three foundational principles of civility (i.e., communicating with courtesy), respect (a promotion of trust and honesty through active listening and compassion) and engagement of staff in a commitment to fully participate in the workplace. Reportedly, the process works best when a work group or team is not currently in crisis or too short on staffing to permit regular attendance in sessions. During this time, the NCOD continues to support the process via weekly phone calls to facilitators and monthly open conference calls with participating sites. So far, the VHA has conducted CREW trainings in more than 1,000 work groups in 109 of its sites. The concept has also gained followers in Canada (e.g., Dr. Michael Leiter’s Canadian Centre for Organizational Research and Development – COR&D) and a number of other places around the world. Based on this experience, the VHA is able to make a Crew Business Case that shows a decrease in the use of sick leave, workers compensation claims, EEO complaints and an increase in productivity, performance and satisfaction for patients and
staff.
TIP: If issues of conflict, respect, impaired communication, discrimination or lack of staff investment and participation are a concern, or you want to further advance a culture of safety in your organization, contact us to learn more about free training opportunities across the
country.
[Note: This is the first of two articles in official TJC publications on this topic this month. This one does the best job of explaining
the workings of this initiative, but both reviews are combined here. The other article found in EOC News is entitled ‘What Did
You Say? Improving communication and civility across an organization‘ – EOC2012, Feb v15#02, pg 6]
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