Department of Tranzo, Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90153, 5000, LE, Tilburg, the Netherlands.
Department of Management, Tilburg School of Economics and Management, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90153, 5000, LE, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2022 Aug 12;17(1):59. doi: 10.1186/s13011-022-00486-y.
Interdisciplinary collaborations (i.e., where various disciplines work coordinated and interdependently toward shared goals) are stated to yield higher team effectiveness than multidisciplinary approaches (i.e., where various disciplines work in parallel within their professional boundaries) in somatic health care settings. Nevertheless, research is lacking on interdisciplinary approaches for alcohol use disorder (AUD) treatment of hospitalized patients as these types of approaches are still uncommon. This study aims to evaluate an innovative interdisciplinary AUD treatment initiative at a general hospital department by 1) identifying which and to what extent network partners are involved and 2) to explore how network partners experienced the interdisciplinary collaboration.
A mixed-method study was conducted, using 1) measures of contact frequency and closeness in a social network analysis and 2) semi-structured interviews, which were analyzed thematically. Respondents were network partners of an interdisciplinary collaboration in a general hospital department, initially recruited by the collaborations' project leader.
The social network analysis identified 16 network partners, including a 'core' network with five central network partners from both inside and outside the hospital. The project leader played an important central role in the network and the resident gastroenterologist seemed to have a vulnerable connection within the network. Closeness between network partners was experienced regardless of frequency of contact, although this was especially true for the 'core' group that (almost) always consisted of the same network partners that were present at biweekly meetings. Interview data showed that presence of the 'core' network partners was reported crucial for an efficient collaboration. Respondents desired knowledge about the collaborations' effectiveness, and one structured protocol with working procedures, division of responsibilities and agreements on information sharing and feedback.
The design of this interdisciplinary collaboration has potential in improving the treatment of hospital patients with AUD and was evaluated positively by the involved network partners. Interdisciplinary collaborations may offer a critical solution to increase treatment rates of patients with AUD and should be adopted in hospitals on a larger scale. Research towards the effectiveness of interdisciplinary collaborations in the treatment of hospitalized patients with AUD is needed.
跨学科合作（即不同学科协调和相互依存地朝着共同目标努力）被认为比多学科方法（即不同学科在其专业范围内平行工作）在躯体保健环境中产生更高的团队效果。然而，由于这些类型的方法仍然不常见，因此缺乏针对住院患者酒精使用障碍（AUD）治疗的跨学科方法的研究。本研究旨在通过 1）确定网络合作伙伴的参与程度和参与程度，以及 2）探讨网络合作伙伴如何体验跨学科合作，来评估综合医院部门一项创新的跨学科 AUD 治疗计划。
采用混合方法研究，使用 1）社会网络分析中的接触频率和接近度的测量指标，以及 2）半结构化访谈，进行主题分析。受访者是综合医院部门跨学科合作的网络合作伙伴，最初由合作项目负责人招募。
社会网络分析确定了 16 个网络合作伙伴，包括一个由医院内外 5 个核心网络合作伙伴组成的“核心”网络。项目负责人在网络中扮演着重要的核心角色，住院肠胃病学家在网络中似乎处于脆弱的联系地位。尽管对于几乎总是由出席双周会议的相同网络合作伙伴组成的“核心”小组来说更是如此，但网络合作伙伴之间的亲密程度还是会受到接触频率的影响。受访者表示，“核心”网络合作伙伴的存在对高效合作至关重要。受访者希望了解合作的效果，并希望有一个带有工作程序、责任分工以及关于信息共享和反馈的协议的结构化协议。
这种跨学科合作的设计有可能改善住院 AUD 患者的治疗效果，并得到了参与网络合作伙伴的积极评价。跨学科合作可能是提高 AUD 住院患者治疗率的关键解决方案，应该在更大范围内在医院中采用。需要研究跨学科合作在治疗住院 AUD 患者方面的效果。
