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NCT Number: NCT05244928

Team Training and Medication Administration in an Ambulance Service

Medication administration events have the potential to cause patient harm. Frequency of medication administration events in the ambulance services is less known. Effective teamwork has been described as paramount for providing safe and effective patient care in the high-risk ambulance environment. "Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety®" is an evidence-based team training program released from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

The aims of the study are: (1) to advance the knowledge of medication administration process in the ambulance services, and (2) to study the impact of a team training program on medication administration events, teamwork, and patient safety culture.

To address the overall aims, the following research objectives will guide the study:

Pre-study: To analyse and validate the psychometric properties of the Norwegian version of the Teamwork Perception Questionnaire for use in an ambulance service.

Studies:

1. To determine the frequency of medication administration events in an ambulance service. 2. To describe the medication administration process in an ambulance service according to the "Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety model". 3. To identify the impact of a team training program on the frequency of medication administration events in an ambulance service. 4. To explore ambulance professionals' experiences of teamwork before and after the implementation of a team training program and their experiences with the program. 5. To compare ambulance professionals' perceptions of teamwork and patient safety culture before and after implementation of a team training program.

Post-study: To study the association between medication administration events and team training and patient safety culture in an ambulance service.

A quasi-experimental, pre- and post-design, provides the framework for the intervention of the team training program in two clusters including seven ambulance stations, in total.

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Key information

Conditions

Patient Safety Medication Administration

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Innlandet Hospital Trust

Brumunddal, 2381, Norway

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

pre-study

  • Ambulance professionals employed in the ambulance services

Exclusion criteria

pre-study

  • Under 18 years of age

Inclusion criteria

study 1 and 3

  • EPJs for patients who are transported or treated within the assigned areas
  • Patient which receives medication (Oxygen, or clear fluid intravenously, by inhalation, intramuscularly, intraosseous, per os, sublingually, or intranasally)

Exclusion criteria

study 1 and 3

  • Missing and/or incomplete data.

Inclusion criteria

study 2

  • Ambulance professionals employed in the ambulance services

Exclusion criteria

study 2

  • Under 18 years of age
  • Student and apprentices

Inclusion criteria

study 4 and 5

  • Ambulance professionals and apprentices participating in the "Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety®" intervention

Exclusion criteria

study 4 and 5

  • Ambulance professionals on long-term leave
  • Under 18 years of age

Treatment and study plan

The team training program "Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety®"

Other

"Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety®" is a team training program consisting of an evidence-based set of tools designed to develop teamwork skills with the goal of improving quality in healthcare services and providing safer patient care. In this study, selected tools from the "Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety®" curriculum have been chosen for implementation over a 4-month period together with a general emphasis on the key principles: communication, leadership, situation monitoring and mutual support. A full day introduction will be held to mark the start of the intervention and each successive month will have a focus on a single key principle with associated tools.

A quasi-experimental, pre- post design, provides the framework for the intervention of the team training program in two clusters including seven ambulance stations, in total.

Primary outcomes

  1. Testing the psychometric properties of the Teamwork Perception Questionnaire

    Time frame: 4 weeks

    The questionnaire will be digitally distributed to approximately 500 ambulance personnel in a hospital trust. Each items are scored on a five-point scale. The survey will be carried out for 14 days in February, and 14 days in August 2022.

  2. The perception of patient safety culture and teamwork.

    Time frame: 3 month

    To measure the ambulance personnel's perception of patient safety culture and teamwork, the Prehospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (five point-scale) and the Teamwork Perception Questionnaire (five point-scale), will be carried out at three times in each cluster (one time before and two times after the intervention)

    In cluster 1, the survey will be carried out for 14 days in January/February 2022, 14 days in June 2022 and 14 days in January 2023.

    In cluster 2, the survey will be carried out for 14 days in August 2022, 14 days in January 2023 and 14 days in August 2023.

  3. The frequency of medication administration in ambulance service

    Time frame: 18 month

    The frequency of medication administration will be assed by a retrospective review of approximately 500 electronic patient journals before the intervention. An interim analysis will be conducted after the this review to determine the final number of necessary review of electronic patient journals after the intervention. The journals will be collected for a 6-month period prior to the intervention and a 12-month period after the end of the intervention in both clusters.

  4. Description of the medication administration process.

    Time frame: 3 month

    Qualitative data from partly participants observations, approximately 10 individual interviews of ambulance professionals and supplemented by local guidelines.

  5. The experiences of teamwork and the team training program before and after the intervention.

    Time frame: 4 days

    Qualitative data from from four focus group interviews before and after the intervention in each cluster.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Association between medication administration, team training and patient safety culture

    Time frame: 21 month

    The study include data from the primary outcome measures 2 and 3.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Sykehuset Innlandet HF

Other

Collaborators

  • Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Registry information

Official study title

Team Training and Medication Administration in an Ambulance Service. A Study of a Team Training Interventions' Impact on Medication Administration, Teamwork, and Patient Safety Culture.

Acronym: TEAM-AMB

Important dates

Study start
2022
Primary completion
2024
Study completion
2024
First posted
Feb 17, 2022
Registry last updated
Oct 6, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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