Validation of a global scale to assess the quality of interprofessional teamwork in mental health settings

AbstractBackground: Few scales currently exist to assess the quality of interprofessional teamwork through team members’ perceptions of working together in mental health settings.Aims: The purpose of this study was to revise and validate an interprofessional scale to assess the quality of teamwork in inpatient psychiatric units and to use it multi-nationally.Methods: A literature review was undertaken to identify evaluative teamwork tools and develop an additional 12 items to ensure a broad global focus. Focus group discussions considered adaptation to different care systems using subjective judgements from 11 participants in a pre-test of items. Data quality, construct validity, reproducibility, and internal consistency were investigated in the survey using an international comparative design.Results: Exploratory factor analysis yielded five factors with 21 items: ‘patient/community centred care’, ‘collaborative communication’, ‘interprofessional conflict’, ‘role clarification’, and ‘environment’. High o...