What makes communication work and for whom? Examining interprofessional collaboration among home care staff using structural equation modeling.

Abstract

Up to 175 conditions influencing interprofessional practices have been identified. Still, little is known about to what extent these conditions interact, influence communication, and vary across professional groups and settings. We explored these knowledge gaps by examining communication among staff in home care and home nursing units in two Danish municipalities, Herning and Holstebro. Conditions were categorized into two types (programme and context) and two levels (professional and organizational). Structural Equation Modeling was used with a sample of 395 staff and 21 managers to analyze the condition categories' interactions, influences on communication, and variations by unit type and municipality. Context conditions strongly influenced programme conditions on the professional and organizational levels. Organizational-level context conditions had no significant influence, organizational-level programme conditions had a weak influence, and professional-level programme and context conditions had moderate influences on communication. Lastly, professional-level programme conditions had the biggest influence on communication for staff in home care units and in Holstebro. In contrast, professional-level context conditions had the biggest influence on communication for staff in home nursing units and in Herning. These findings offer unique insights into conditions' interactions, influences, and variances, contributing to our understanding of what makes communication work and for whom.