Multi-Disciplinary Teams in Healthcare

According to Tanaka (2003), it has become widely recognised that multidisciplinary team care plays a critical role in today’s medical practice. The Geriatric and Rehabilitation Unit (GARU), functioning under the umbrella of Queensland Health, is a medical unit where I am doing my first student placement. This unit is made up of a team of allied health professionals; doctors, nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, social workers, and dietician/nutritionist. The majority of clients coming into the rehabilitation unit are clients who have had strokes, burns, amputations, vehicle accidents, and brain or spinal tumours. Each client is assigned a team of professionals who work with them on a daily basis to assist in their recovery. Every Tuesday the teams come together for case conferences and a social morning tea. Each and every client on the ward is discussed; where they are in their recovery, issues that may be impeding on their recovery or discharge, what services they may need after discharge, current goals each client has, and an estimated date of discharge is discussed.  There may also be a need for a family meeting and the professionals assigned to each client come together with the client, when possible, and their families to discuss the urgent issue(s).

Beddoe and Maidment (2009), say these types of collaborative experiences provide rich opportunities for learning from both the other bodies of knowledge and from the experience of teamwork. Another bonus of working in this unit with all the health professions is having contact with students from these professions. Working inside the agency opens up great learning experiences for working with other professions, the social worker also get to work with outside agencies as well.

Part of the role of the social worker at GARU is to make referrals to other agencies when needed. For instance, one agency I have had contact with is the ACAT (Aged Care Assessment Team). This is a service that assesses elderly clients who cannot maintain living at home unassisted. It helps them stay in their own environment while providing any or all of the following services; nursing, showering, cleaning, meal preparation or cooking, shopping, driving to appointments. I had the opportunity to make an agency visit to ACAT and drive with a social worker while she assessed three clients in their homes for these services.

This relationship between the GARU and ACAT social workers benefit the clients enormously. By putting forth the ACAT referrals we get to help clients return home and leave rehab even though they still can’t function completely independent. My experience of both taking part in a multi-disciplinary team and observing one, especially during case conference, has been a very positive one.