Communication and Teamwork in the Laboratory
Laboratory work is team-based and error-prone at handover points, so candidates must understand structured communication. Know SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation) for escalating concerns, closed-loop communication (repeat back instructions to confirm), and the value of read-back for critical results. Understand that critical or panic results must be phoned promptly, documented with who was told, when, and what was said. Understand roles in a laboratory team (collector, technician, scientist, quality manager) and the importance of scope of practice: only perform tasks you are trained and authorised to do.
Traps: assuming a message sent is a message received; failing to document a verbal critical result; using jargon or abbreviations that are ambiguous in written records; blaming individuals rather than examining systems after an error. Understand confidentiality and privacy obligations, consent to share results, and the need to report near misses as well as incidents. Know that constructive feedback and clear handover reduce error more effectively than individual vigilance alone.
Worked example: A technician notes a potassium result far above the reference range. Correct action is to verify the sample (possible haemolysis), then phone the requesting clinician using SBAR, obtain read-back of the value, and document time, recipient and content in the record.
Rule of thumb: if it was not documented, it did not happen; if it was not read back, it was not heard.