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Date: 4/25/2023
SPRINGFIELD — To enhance communication and teamwork between a woman in labor and the clinicians caring for them, Mercy Medical Center has launched TeamBirth, a new initiative that improves the overall birthing experience.
TeamBirth was developed by Ariadne Labs, a joint center for health systems innovation at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.
On April 14, Mercy Medical announced the launch of TeamBirth.
Dr. Elizabeth Rottenberg, Mercy’s clinical leader for the TeamBirth project, said that teamwork and communication are “at the core of what we do on a daily basis. TeamBirth provides [us] with a template to objectify from a communication and teamwork [standpoint].”
Rottenberg compared the TeamBirth process to the role of a sports coach. For instance, a basketball coach can shout out plays and communicate with people on the court and bench and draw out plays to show exactly what will happen.
As the delivery process can be exciting, confusing and scary, among other emotions, Rottenberg said, “The TeamBirth initiative allows us to step back and utilize an objective source [by] communicating verbally and visually.”
Rottenberg said the clinicians talk among themselves and with the patients about what has happened in terms of dilation, the baby’s heartbeat, what medication has been administered and so on.
To provide a visual aspect as well, whiteboards have been placed in all labor and delivery rooms to show the patients what is happening. “Most people are visual learners … To hear something is one thing, but to see it is another,” Rottenberg said.
During the process, Rottenberg said the clinicians have specific times written on the whiteboard for them to huddle together and evaluate what is going on.
“We are not different from a team,” said Rottenberg. “We are all a team here.” From midwives to doctors, dietary aids, family members and more, she noted that everyone makes sure patients have the best stay.
Rottenberg went on to say that TeamBirth takes the two core measures of patient safety and care and enhances it to make the patient feel included in the process.
A few days after TeamBirth launched, Rottenberg used the new program.
“It went great,” she shared. “It flowed nicely and felt natural.”
When Rottenberg talked to doctors and midwives about this new program, she said people raised their eyebrows and asked, “Do we not already do this?”
“I thought that was a positive thing,” said Rottenberg, as the hospital had already implemented these practices before TeamBirth.
Trinity Health of New England Communications and Media Specialist Mary Orr said, “When my daughter had a baby, she didn’t have a midwife. No matter what options you choose, they can be a part of TeamBirth.”
Rottenberg agreed and said whether you follow a doctor or a midwife, all are a part of the TeamBirth tool.
Background
Rottenberg explained that the name Ariadne came about in Greek mythology, as she was the daughter of a god. Ariadne fell in love with someone sacrificed to a minotaur in a maze. After giving him a weapon and string that followed behind, he overcame the minotaur and was able to follow the string out of the maze.
“It’s a simple solution to a complex problem,” Rottenberg said.
The labor and delivery process, she noted, can be unpredictable, overwhelming, painful and can change at any moment. For some that have never experienced it, the process prepares parents for a new stage in life.
“TeamBirth is a simple solution to addressing this complex problem,” said Rottenberg.
After learning about this initiative, Rottenberg and Laura Bowler, perinatal safety and quality nurse manager, applied to be a part of the first TeamBirth cohort and were accepted.
Rottenberg noted that Mercy Medical was the only hospital in Western Massachusetts to be accepted in the first cohort. There are three cohorts in total.
Rottenberg is hopeful that other hospitals will take on this initiative in the future.
She went on to say that “many things have become foreign” in ways the labor process is described. Whether English is not someone’s first language, or they are having their first baby – whatever the reason someone is unfamiliar with verbiage – it is important that the information is discussed, Rottenberg added.
According to Mercy Medical Center, “Research indicates that failures in communication between providers and patients accounts for up to 90% of preventable injuries during childbirth.” TeamBirth is designed to address those gaps.
The initiative is now implemented in more than 16 health systems across the United States, involving more than 1,500 clinicians and more than 67,000 mothers and babies.