Dr. Mark Antman Shares Tips about Working in Multidisciplinary Teams
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by: LelouchLambourne
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Word Count: 470
Date: Tue, 25 Oct 2011 Time: 8:22 PM
Although Dr. Mark Antman is more than used to working alone and is able to achieve great results even so, that does not mean he does not appreciate the benefits of being able to work with a multidisciplinary team. Unlike many other physicians, Antman does not see any harm in asking the opinion of other medical professionals who have specialized skills and knowledge that he does not possess. Take the case of dementia, for instance. This highly complex mental disorder definitely cannot rely on the services of a GP and nurse alone. For a person with dementia to improve or at least enjoy a sufficiently stable and satisfactory lifestyle, he requires the care that only a multidisciplinary team can provide.
Dr. Mark Antman had a chance to work as a part of multidisciplinary team during his internship in residency. In the years when he had become a licensed and full-fledged doctor, the opportunities to do so had waned. He nevertheless welcomes any chance that would allow him to work with professionals from other medical fields and be able to learn from them as well. Antman is consciously aware that in such teams, it is the role of the nurse that matters the most. The nurse is the key worker in a team, which means he or she is responsible for ensuring that everyone is coordinating with each other and that everyone in the team will also be able to meet goals within the specific timeframe provided. Nurses in multidisciplinary teams are also responsible for obtaining resources and making sure that they are allocated properly.
The key worker concept is still fairly new in the field of medicine and science, but it is a concept that Dr. Mark Antman trusts. In a multidisciplinary team, having one member made a leader may be difficult for other team members to accept since they are of the same stature. A key worker makes a wonderful alternative because their roles do not place them in a leadership role. Rather, key workers are basically a team’s coordinator – the person that every member approaches when it comes to anything relevant about the team. A key worker will not cause anyone to feel hurt pride or resentment the way choosing one of the members as leader could.
In working with multidisciplinary teams, Antman knows that it is integral for all members to show respect and appreciation toward the job that nurses do. Not only do they make the best key workers, but they are also often the ones that spend the greatest amount of time with the patient. Their input is therefore incredibly valuable and must be treated that way. They may not be doctors, but their skills and knowledge are unique and of the same importance with what any other doctor can contribute.
About the Author
The perfect photograph is boring, says Dr. Mark Antman, and overrated. For Dr. Mark Antman, the imperfections in a photograph are what make the picture uniquely beautiful and distinct from the rest. One cannot completely control how a subject should look like.
