How can you assess clinical skills for cross-functional teams in healthcare?

2 Use multiple methods and sources

To assess clinical skills, you need to use multiple methods and sources that can capture the complexity and diversity of clinical practice. You can use a combination of formal and informal methods, such as interviews, tests, simulations, observations, portfolios, references, and feedback. You can also use multiple sources, such as self-assessment, peer assessment, supervisor assessment, patient assessment, and external assessment. By using multiple methods and sources, you can reduce bias, increase validity, and gain a more comprehensive and holistic picture of the clinical skills of your potential team members.

3 Align your assessment with your team's objectives and culture

To ensure that your assessment of clinical skills is relevant and meaningful for your cross-functional team, you need to align it with your team's objectives and culture. You need to consider what clinical skills are most important for your team's goals, challenges, and opportunities. You also need to consider how your team's values, norms, and behaviors influence the way clinical skills are expressed and evaluated. For example, if your team values innovation and learning, you may want to assess how your potential team members approach problem-solving, feedback, and improvement. If your team values collaboration and respect, you may want to assess how your potential team members communicate, coordinate, and share responsibility with others.

4 Provide feedback and support

To make your assessment of clinical skills more effective and beneficial for your cross-functional team, you need to provide feedback and support to your potential team members. Feedback is essential for learning, development, and performance improvement. You need to provide feedback that is timely, specific, constructive, and actionable. You need to highlight the strengths and areas of improvement of your potential team members, and suggest ways they can enhance their clinical skills. Support is also important for motivation, engagement, and retention. You need to provide support that is responsive, respectful, and empowering. You need to show your potential team members that you care about their clinical skills and their contribution to your team.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?