Purposes: To discover what influences collaboration had on an interdisciplinary team practicing in a rural Midwestern long-term -care facility, to discover what factors iinfluence collaboration, and to discover what barriers can hinder collaboration for  the interdisciplinary team practicing in this facility. Organizing framework: Synergy model AACN (1998) Sigma Theta Tau International  (2004).Method: In this descriptive, qualitative study, eleven semi-structured in-depth interviews  were completed, and a constant comparative method of data analysis was used, by Strauss and Corbin (1990, 1998).Findings: The categories that emerged from the data analysis were (a) chronic health conditions, (b) collaboration, (c) communication, (d) expectations, (e) influences that enhance collaboration and (f) influences that are barriers to collaboration.  Influences that enhance collaboration fell into the following subcategories: (a) communion (sharing), (b) community (connectedness), (c) independence, (d) problem-solving, (e) responsibility, and (f) synergism.  Barriers to collaboration had eight subcategories: (a) unresolved factors, (b) feelings of isolation, (c) interrelationships, (d) lack of understanding, (e) minimum data set (MDS) and  Medicare, (f) physician’s role, (g) unmet expectations, and (h) end-of-life.Seven themes and their assertions related to the categories were then discussed. Conclusions: Collaboration is an important and significant factor in a nurse practitioner's role. Effective collaboration can enhance the knowledge and skills of a nurse practitioner and enhance the relationship of the nurse practitioner with all members of the interdisciplinary team.

See more of Collaborative Teams Initiatives
See more of The 17th International Nursing Research Congress Focusing on Evidence-Based Practice (19-22 July 2006)