CHAPTER ■ MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAMWORK JANE LAVELLE, DEBRA A POTTS, TRACY A WALKER, JAMES C WON, JACQUELINE T NOLL INTRODUCTION Emergency departments (EDs) must provide efficient, comprehensive care to patients with emergent and nonemergent conditions who arrive in an unpredictable manner 24 hours daily The environment of the ED is one of organized chaos; there is a high cognitive load, a high density of decision making and technical/diagnostic evaluations and reevaluations occurring in an atmosphere with constant interruptions The environment of the ED is composed of the physical space, the care processes, and the people; the people are the most important component With the explosion of medical knowledge and technology resulting in complex patients and care processes, the complexity of decision making and the execution of tasks have correspondingly increased Rather than placing this entire burden on individuals, there has been a shift in emphasis to teams and to the importance of performance in teams, with a focus on understanding effective coordination and collaboration facilitating this performance Teams offer the ability to achieve more than any single person can achieve—they offer a variety of knowledge to make decisions, solve problems, generate ideas, and complete tasks more effectively and efficiently Patients with growing medical complexity require a healthcare team to optimize their experience and outcome This is even more critical for the ED where teamwork occurs in uncertain, time-pressured situations Thus, the environment, care processes, and leadership must support a culture which allows for the development of strong interdisciplinary teams with shared awareness, goals, knowledge, and strong communication skills including the ability to resolve conflict in the moment WHY TEAMWORK IS IMPORTANT TO QUALITY AND SAFETY