Learning Team C Reflection Paper
Mitzi Bullis
Patricia Howe
Kimberly Miller
Ana Parrilla
Kathleen Sullivan
University of Phoenix
HCS 350
Monday, December 8, 2014
Michael Veal

Discuss the group's success in conducting a meeting or completing a task. Discuss potential reasons for a group's failure to meet their goals and objectives. What strategies do you use to improve success in conducting meetings or performing group tasks in health care settings? When we think of a meeting, we can formulate the idea of getting together at a table to discuss a topic, an issue or to review the agenda. According to a google search, a meeting is "an assembly of people, especially the members of a society or committee, for discussion or entertainment." Or "a coming together of two or more persons, by chance or arrangement." For the last three week, we have been successful as a team by working on different projects. Our team has done well with respecting time constraints and different views. As a team, we have successfully made suggestions, provided guidance and feedback, and redirected one another as needed. We all feel that we were able to do this efficiently based on all of our abilities to communicate with professionalism. In a group, it is necessary to have leadership to provide guidance and keep the project moving in a forward direction. We have done that quite well. There needs to be a starting point, and a framework discussed or provided by leadership, in order for a team to be successful. If this is not provided, everyone works from their ideas and it can slow the project or it may even fail. Success lies with a shared goal in mind. Goals have to be clear, concise and concrete. The team's ultimate goal is to complete and pass this course. Self-accountability and effective communication are vital to successful completing a task as a team. Poor decision making, absence of clear goals, reduced role clarity, and poor time management all play a part in a group's failure. Lack of leadership and gaps in communication can all lead to a team's disappointment. The best method to avoid gaps in communication between the team is to have everyone voice their concerns over the situations rather than ignoring them until they become a major problem. Collaboration is an effective communication style because all parties involved have a say in the decision-making process. With all team members having "input" there is a sense of comradery and all working towards the benefit of the patient. We all have collaborated to achieve the last two assignments. We would have had failure if we did not participate and contribute our portion. Creating and utilizing an agenda is a strategy in a team meeting that could be helpful in directing meetings and accomplishing group tasks efficiently. An agenda keeps the meeting focused and on task. It establishes goals and objectives to review and meet. Collectively our team has worked very well together in developing and achieving success. A designated facilitator was established at the beginning of the class. Everyone was given the opportunity to become a leader on each weekly assignment. Each week the leader facilitated the flow of the designated task. Conflict has not been an issue. If it were present, we would have the sense to discuss the issue and resolve the conflict. Particular bridges to communication with other health professionals are described, together with strategies to remove communication barriers. One strategy for removing communication barriers is respect for one another. "Three critical factors are an active climate of professional practice, a supportive manager, and positive, respectful relationships with other staff" (Arnold & Bogg, 2011, p. 454). Feeling respected or not respected is a vital part of how health care members rate the quality of their work environment. ‘Nursing is too complex to expect ready agreement on all issues. Trust does not imply easy harmony. In trusting relationships conflicts motivate people to probe for deeper understanding and search for constructive solutions. Trust creates good will, which sustains the relationship when one team member does something the other dislikes. The positive side of a conflict is that it can bring opportunity, development and growth to individuals and groups and can lead to more efficient personal and organizational performance’ (Smith-Trudeau, 2014, p. 3). Trust and respect are vital to a productive team. Lack of trust may be one reason groups fail to meet their goals. Every team member has individual strengths and weaknesses, and when the team is comfortable with each other, professional, efficient communication resulting in real, reachable goals will be possible. Having a vision, showing determination, having a sense of self-belief and confidence within your team all contribute to the success and achievement of goals set. Strategies have been put in place to help us achieve set goals with our weekly class group assignments. By us working as a team, this has given us time to build trust between one another and communicate effectively.

REFERENCES
Arnold, E., & Boggs, K. U. (2011). Interpersonal relationships: Professional communication skills for nurses (6th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier/Saunders.
Smith-Trudeau, P. (2014, October). Nurses Building Healthy Team Relationships. Vermont Nurse Connection, 17(4), 3-4. 360 LINK.
What is a meeting? Retrieved from https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=what+is+a+meeting