ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the impact of time pressure on trauma resuscitation team performance, by using tracheal intubation as a model to contrast task performance at two levels of task urgency, emergency and elective interventions, depending on the clinical circumstances. Time pressure is a hallmark of trauma care where breakdowns in coordination can result in errors which threaten the life of a patient and where decisions are frequently made with high levels of uncertainty. Richer understanding of team performance under time pressure can benefit patient safety by assisting in team training development and can boost individual and team competencies in non-technical aspects of care, such as task prioritization, leadership and decision-making. Team performance depends on the ability to coordinate members’ capabilities and efforts. Direct observation is a valuable method for collecting information pertaining to team- and task-work performance when under time pressure. Communication breakdowns, workload and competing tasks had a measurable negative impact on team performance.
