A Framework for Communication in Complex Healthcare Environments: The Case of the Electrophysiology Lab

Team communication challenges compound the complexity of healthcare environments. While there is a significant body of research on team interaction in surgical and operating room settings, there is limited research in more specialized use environments such as the electrophysiology (EP) lab where an interdisciplinary team supports the diagnostics and interventional correction of the heart’s electrical timing. This work proposes a novel framework to uncover and classify team communication pathways in complex healthcare environments via a case study of the EP lab. Designers of integrated medical systems should study the communication practices and communication barriers of intended users to drive better user needs and design inputs.