Team Cognition As a Means to Improve Care Delivery in Critically Ill Patients With Cancer After Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is an important and complex treatment modality for a variety of hematologic malignancies and some solid tumors. Although outcomes of patients who have undergone HCT and require care in intensive care units (ICUs) have improved over time, mortality rates remain high and there are significant associated costs. Lack of a team-based approach to care, especially during critical illness, is detrimental to patient autonomy and satisfaction, and to team morale, ultimately leading to poor quality of care. In this manuscript, we describe the case of a patient who had undergone HCT and was in the ICU setting, where inconsistent team interaction among the various stakeholders delivering care resulted in a lack of shared goals and poor outcomes. Team cognition is cognitive processing at the team level through interactions among team members and is reflected in dynamic communication and coordination behaviors. Although the patient received multidisciplinary care as needed in a medically complicated case, a lack of team cognition and, particularly, inconsistent communication among the dynamic teams caring for the patient, led to mixed messages being delivered with high-cost implications for the health-care system and the family. This article highlights concepts and recommendations that begin a necessary in-depth assessment of implications for clinical care and initiate a research agenda that examines the effects of team cognition on HCT teams, and, more generally, critical care of the patient with cancer.