Listening to humans.

To the Editor: Art is an expression of any kind of human experience[: this is possible through different types of personal capacities, namely verbal, written, illustrated, and musical. At the same time, art can be care per se,[ and can represent a means of personal growth.[ Every day, as clinicians, we are required to provide a qualitative assistance service that meets the expectations and needs of patients. The expression of our professional qualities is mediated by the level of interaction that we can implement when we operate within multidisciplinary teams. The ability to interact profitably between different professions is undoubtedly the maximum expression of high organizational activity and, even so, of a healthy and purposeful work environment. For professionals, this ability to interact profitably is of substantial importance since the care activities afford for collaboration with many figures. In some contexts, collaboration is the fruit of productive organizational actions, but one could not always be lucky enough to enjoy an optimal or sub-optimal collaborative framework. In these cases, resulting from different reasons, the quality of the service can be negatively affected both for the clinicians and for the patients. In a way, the ability to cooperate between individuals is the highest expression of human's magnificence.

I would draw your attention to a musical performance: the orchestras and their director are executing Bolero,[ which is a ballet written in 1928 by the French composer Maurice Ravel.[

When I watched it for the first time, I was fascinated by the intensity of the whole execution. Of course, many more versions are available of the same piece, but this one particularly stimulated my reflections. Listening, other than to be a personal characteristic if related to verbal communication is also a form of art because while listening, we can convey our feeling into the desired direction. In the present case, one could direct his/her imagination to a possible group of professionals cooperating during a regular shift in the presence of different actors, namely colleagues, patients, caregivers. The orchestra's components can reflect these figures: during the execution, they are playing the same game, and they are directed to the same final destination. Bolero is a monotone, redundant execution, which progresses in a crescendo towards its final: metaphorically, Bolero in this sense can mirror the beginning and end of a journey. If we compare the mission of the orchestras with our professional one, there are no fundamental differences: we all are asked to take our duties in cooperation with others, and this is not optional. We are not single players, nor we are enabled to take action entirely alone when providing care to others in health care services. Cooperation, for example, is desirable in rehabilitation, a discipline based on multiple relations; between physiotherapist and patient or between a physiotherapist and other members of a team. Think about the level of cooperation needed in intensive care settings when promoting early patient mobility; without the participation of all the team members –– physicians, nurses, and physiotherapists –– such an objective could be nullified. Consider how many professional interactions and therapeutic processes are necessary to assist a patient during the post-operative recovery after major surgical procedures or transplantation. These examples can facilitate the comprehension of the importance of acting together when providing care to patients; and of promoting a virtuous behavior within a team or a group of colleagues.

Let art help us to see the way of collaboration better. In this sense, art can be a form of care and a means of personal growth. Considering this point of view could be particularly useful for those who too often neglect or ignore the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration in care settings.

Conflicts of interest

None.