Interprofessional communication and teamwork is critical to patient safety. First-year medical and nursing residents participated in team engagement sessions focused on collaboration and safety behaviors through socialization, team communication, and engagement skills. Sessions consisted of a pre-recorded scenario of a safety event resulting in a patient’s death followed by a facilitated debrief. Escalation of care, SBAR (situation, background, assessment, recommendation), and “ask a question, make a request, voice a concern” were identified as the top 3 safety/communication techniques that could have changed the outcome of the simulated scenario. Approximately two-thirds of participants perceived lack of confidence and fear of giving the wrong information as barriers to safety/communication techniques.

The failure of a provider to communicate the diagnosis to the patient is a diagnostic error. This communication includes not only telling the patient what their diagnosis is but also ensuring they understand it. In this study, hospitalized patients were asked if “the healthcare team told you the main reason you’re in the hospital (your diagnosis) in a way you understand” and their level of confidence in the diagnosis. Just under half of patients reported the same diagnosis as indicated in the electronic health record (EHR), ie, diagnostic concordance. Patients admitted with nonspecific symptoms (“R-codes”) and those reporting less confidence in their diagnosis experienced lower diagnostic concordance. Non-English speakers were not included in the study, which the authors recognize as a limitation as this population is particularly vulnerable to suboptimal communication and misdiagnosis.