Project Descriptions
The following 12 Doctoral Projects represent a multi-methodological and multidisciplinary approach to teamwork, showcasing the diversity of research in this field. All 12 Doctoral Projects are funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Doctoral Networks Programme of the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme.
Project 1: Psychological safety and conflict management in teamwork in the operating theatre
Recruiting organisation: Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation (CAMES), Denmark
Supervisor: Dr. Peter Dieckmann
Doctoral Candidate: Marija Topalovic
Secondments: UZH, Switzerland, 2 months; Tue Eindhoven, The Netherlands, 3 months
Summary: The PhD project aims to enhance the understanding of conflict management in the operating room (OR) setting by exploring conflicts and respective conflict management strategies and to investigate simulation as a tool for improving conflict management skills among the OR healthcare professionals. Full project description.
Project 2: Wearables for Acute Care Teams (WeACT)
Recruiting organisation: Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Supervisor: Dr. Josette Gevers
Doctoral Candidate: Jingwen Yang
Secondments: Dr. Travis Wiltshire, Tilburg University, The Netherlands (3 months); Prof. Peter Dieckmann, REGIONH, Denmark (3 months)
Summary: The project aims to explore the effectiveness of team biofeedback (using wearables) in acute care context. Its objectives are to:
- Propose a theoretical framework regarding how team biofeedback can be designed in different formats to promote team effectiveness
- Make recommendations of effective biofeedback design for acute care teams by comparing various designs in empirical studies.
Full project description.
Project 3: An automatic speech recognition tool to assess, feedback and improve team communication in operating room teams
Recruiting organisation: University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Guido Beldi, Prof. Dr Tanja Manser, Dr Sandra Keller
Doctoral Candidate: Lilien Schewski
Secondments: Bonn University Hospital (UKB) in Germany and REGION HOVEDSTADEN (Region H) in Denmark
Summary: Based on automatic speech analysis, we will facilitate the development of an automated tool that can assess and provide feedback to surgeons on their communication patterns, with a particular focus on the expression of negative emotions and stress in their intra-operative communication. The project has following aims: (1) Identification, in audio-recorded surgical operations, patterns of speech that coincide with sequences stress and experienced negative emotions. (2) Establish a validated methodology to automatically assess negative emotions and stress based on audio-recordings. (3) Prototype a feedback system to inform surgeons on their communication patterns assessed based on audio-recordings of operations. Full project description.
Project 4: Development of a Behavioural Anchored Rating Scale to Assess Reflection Quality During Debriefings
Recruiting organisation: University of Zurich, Switzerland
Supervisor: Prof. Jan Schmutz, Prof. Peter Dieckmann
Doctoral Candidate: Arndt Pool
Secondments: LMU Munich, Germany (2 months); Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation (CAMES), Denmark (3 months)
Summary: evelopment of a Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS) to measure Team Reflection in healthcare debriefings is achieved by a multi-pronged approach that combines inductive and deductive approaches:
- Integration of the literature to outline central components and definitions of Team Reflection Quality
- Utilizing retranslation of expectations to identify team reflection quality behavioral markers from subject-matter experts
- Quantification of reflection quality behavioral markers in debriefings to derive interventions in support of reflection during debriefings.
Full project description.
Project 5: VR-based assessment and training of situation awareness in emergency care teams
Recruiting organisation: University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW)
Supervisor: Prof. Tanja Manser
Doctoral Candidate: Laura Moens
Secondments: University of Galway, Ireland, for 2 months; ORamaVR, 2 months
Summary: The focus of this PhD fellowship is to utilize VR/AR technology to assess and improve non-technical skills with a particular focus on situation awareness (SA) in emergency care teams. The project aims to:
(1) Establish a VR-based methodology to reliably assess SA during a VR-based emergency care scenario.
(2) Understand situational cues that help or hinder SA in VR-based emergency care scenarios.
(3) Investigate the relationship between SA and several performance markers related to team performance and quality of care.
(4) Develop VR-based trainings to improve SA of healthcare providers in emergency care.
See the Full project description.
Project 6: Remote monitoring of patients in the community
Recruiting organisation: Discipline of Primary Care, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland.
Supervisors: Dr. Paul O’Connor and Dr. Sinead Lydon
Co-supervisor: Prof. Tanja Manser, University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW)
Doctoral Candidate: Sara Cucurachi
Secondments: Aerogen, Galway (2 months); University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, Switzerland (FHNW) (2 months)
Summary: The project aims to explore the barriers and facilitators of remote patient monitoring. Its objectives are to: (1) Identify the challenges and key enablers of remote physiological monitoring from the perspectives of all stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, patients, and technology developers. (2) Develop recommendations to overcome these barriers and enhance team performance in remote monitoring practices. See the full project description.
Recruiting organisation: Department of Public and Occupational Health at the Amsterdam University Medical Center, the Netherlands
Supervisors: Prof. Martine de Bruijne, Dr. Marijke Melles, Dr. Hanneke Merten, Dr. Gerard Kraan
Doctoral Candidate: Yutian (Tony) Sun
Secondments: Reinier de Graaf HAGA Orthopedic Center in Delft, NL (3 months & 2 months); University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (3 months); Department of Applied Ergonomics and Design, Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology (3 months)
Summary
This PhD project aims to investigate communication and collaboration needs between hand-wrist orthopedic patients and healthcare providers. By leveraging Networked Care solutions, the research seeks to enhance patient involvement and interprofessional collaboration, ultimately optimizing treatment outcomes. The project will: (1) Identify the communication and collaboration needs of hand-wrist orthopedic patients during their care process. (2) Understand the needs and challenges faced by healthcare providers in treating patients and collaborating across teams. See the full project description
Project 8: A network communication platform to support transmural care teams
Recruiting organisation: Department of Public and Occupational Health at the Amsterdam University Medical Center, the Netherlands
Supervisors: Prof. Martine de Bruijne; dr. Marijke Melles, Thijs Rietjens, Marit B. Hagland
Doctoral Candidate: Carla Molenaar
Secondments: Caresharing in the Netherlands (3 months); Valide AS in Norway (3 months)
Summary: The purpose of this project is to adapt, test and implement a digital information integration platform to support transmural care provided by care teams, consisting of professionals in primary and secondary care, the patient and his/her informal care givers. The goals of the project will be achieved through: (1) Investigating the needs, values, facilitators and barriers of stakeholders involved in transmural elderly care by literature review; (2) Explore specific contextual challenges for transmural team functioning and identify specific design opportunities using human centered design research techniques (i.e. a sociotechnical system perspective including stakeholder mapping, context mapping and patient journey mapping); (3) Iterative adaptive design of (extensions of) the information integration platform with support for transmural teams; (4) identify and understand cross-national differences in contextual challenges and use of transmural support tools for transmural care teams; and (5) Evaluate the impact of a tailored integration information platform to support transmural care teams. See the full project description.
Recruiting organisation: Centre for Resilience in Healthcare (SHARE), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway.
Supervisors: Prof. Karina Aase, Prof. Sissel Eikeland Husebø, Prof. Randi Ballangrud and Prof. Cordula Wagner.
Doctoral Candidate: Jicke Höök
Secondments: Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Department of Public and Occupational Health, VUmc (3 months), Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and NIVEL (3 months), Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Summary
The Multi-Team System (MTS) of the stroke patient trajectory is a dynamic and adaptive organisational structure composed of multiple interdependent teams that coordinate patient care across prehospital, hospital, and post-hospital settings. Effective collaboration within the MTS is essential to ensure seamless care transitions, patient safety, and optimal recovery outcomes.
Despite its critical role, significant knowledge gaps remain regarding the structure, coordination mechanisms, and team competencies that influence MTS performance. This PhD project aims to investigate, analyse, and enhance the MTS of the stroke patient trajectory by:
- Mapping the structure of the MTS, identifying strengths and areas for improvement.
- Examining patient handovers, analysing coordination challenges and enablers.
- Developing a tool to strengthen MTS competencies, supporting more effective teamwork.
A qualitative multi-method approach will be used. Observations in Studies 1 and 2 will capture team interactions, while Study 3 will employ focus groups to develop a practical tool to support collaboration.
See the full project description.
Project 10: Full-scale surgical teamwork training through augmented-reality simulation: Clinical implementation and effectiveness for provider and patient care performance
Recruiting organization: Institute for Patient Safety (IfPS), Bonn University Hospital, Germany
Supervisor: Prof. Matthias Weigl
Doctoral Candidate: Kathrin Adamietz
Secondments: Medability GmbH, Germany (2 Months); The University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, Switzerland (2 Months)
Summary:
Summary: Virtual- and augmented-reality technologies offer great potential for transforming both surgical training and interdisciplinary collaboration. Our project addresses challenges associated with utilization and implementation of VR/AR-based technologies in multidisciplinary tumor board meetings as well as surgical training practice, with particular focus to spine surgery. We aim to (1) Systematically assess requirements of stakeholders and workflow processes to effectively identify needs to be addressed by VR technology, ensuring optimal task and process fulfilment; (2) Assess the usability and utility of pilot VR technology for intended user and evaluate the possible barriers and facilitators of integrating such into clinical practice; (3) Investigate VR/AR-based training for surgeons, focusing on both technical as well as non-technical skills; and (4) Explore consequences for provider and patient outcomes in delivery of surgical care in spine surgery. See the full project description.
Project 11: Exploring the Value of Simulation as a Tool to Support the Home Care Sector: A Multidimensional Perspective
Recruiting organisation: Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation (CAMES)
Supervisor: Prof. Peter Dieckmann,
Co-supervisor: Prof. Karina Aase, Dr. Birgitte Bruun
Doctoral Candidate: Fatama Faraj
Secondments: University of Stavanger, Norway (2 months); VUmc Amsterdam, The Netherlands (3 months).
Summary:
The PhD project is situated within the home care sector and adopts a multidimensional approach to understanding the impact of simulation-based training (SBT). This training is implemented through the course “Professional Introduction for New Employees”, designed by the Health and Care Administration of the Municipality of Copenhagen for newly employed home care assistants, among others. The course aims to enhance caregiving skills, improve the quality of care, and support onboarding to increase workforce retention within the organization.
The project aims to: (1) Explore the everyday practices of home care assistants to understand work-as-done and its challenges. (2) Understand the value of SBT from the perspectives of home care assistants and other relevant stakeholders. (3) Generate a method to evaluate the long-term impact of SBT on workforce retention and organizational outcomes.
See the full project description.
Project 12: Person-centred practice in the stroke patient trajectory: A mixed-method study
Recruiting organisation: Centre for Resilience in Healthcare (SHARE), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Stavanger, Stavanger
Supervisor: Prof. Karina Aase
Co-supervisor: Prof. Peter Dieckmann and Prof. Stephen J. M. Sollid
Doctoral Candidate: Asma Sabri
Secondments: Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Department of Public and Occupational Health, VUmc, Amsterdam, Netherlands (3 months) and Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation, REGIONH, Copenhagen, Denmark (3 months)
Summary:
This PhD project aims to understand and support Person-centred practice in the stroke patient trajectory through:
- Mapping the characteristics of person-centred practice in the stroke patient trajectory from the literature. (Study 1)
- Understanding the experiences and perspectives of Patients, Caregivers, and Healthcare professionals regarding person-centred practice. (Study 2)
- Developing guidance to support person-centred practice in the stroke patient trajectory. (Study 3). See full project description.
