Staff teamwork in long-term care facilities: the influence of management style, training, and feedback.

The purpose of this study was to describe the organizational factors associated with high and low amounts of teamwork among direct-care workers in long-term care (LTC) facilities. A systematic analysis of observation data collected at 20 LTC facilities was first used to categorize facilities as high-, moderate-, or low-teamwork facilities. Next, qualitative analysis of 59 interviews collected in 4 high-teamwork and 5 low-teamwork facilities was used to identify the organizational factors associated with high and low teamwork. Findings showed that high- and low-teamwork LTC facilities in this study differed in three organizational areas: management style, training, and feedback and recognition. As such, improved teamwork in LTC facilities may result from changes to basic management practices, such as training and employee feedback. Copyright 2011, SLACK Incorporated.