Attitudes to safety and teamwork in the operating theatre, and the effects of a program of simulation-based team training

The aim of this chapter is to determine if the safety and teamwork culture of an operating suite changes with a structured simulation-based team training program. The attitudes of the staff working within the complex social environment of the operating theatre are determinants of the outcome factors of safety, effi ciency and job satisfaction. High reliability organizations have recognized that an initial evaluation of attitudes to safety is an important part of managing the changes of the environment, and the assessment of 'Crew Resource Management' (CRM) training in improving decision making and team-building. The composition of this training must be devised for each institution in turn. A Safety Attitudes Questionnaire was administered to operating theatre staff before and after a simulation- based team training program, to assess the effectiveness of the program in changing the safety and teamwork culture. At present, insuffi cient data are currently available to allow statistically valid conclusions to be drawn.