| The operating room is a high stress, high stakes, emotionally charged area with an interdisciplinary team that must work cohesively for the benefit of all. If an operating room staff does not understand those emotions, such a deficit can lead to decreased effective communication and an ineffectual response to problems. Emotional intelligence is a conceptual framework encompassing the ability to identify, assess, perceive, and manage emotions. The research question for this project is aimed at understanding how an educational intervention could help to improve the emotional intelligence of anesthetists and their ability to communicate with other operation room staff to produce effective problem solving. The purpose of this scholarly project was to design a 5-week evidence-based, educational intervention that will be implemented for 16 nurse anesthetists practicing in 3 rural hospitals in Southern Kentucky. The Emotional and Social Competency Inventory -- University Edition will be offered to the nurse anesthetists prior to the educational intervention and 6 weeks post implementation to determine impact on the 12 core concepts of emotional intelligence which are categorized under self-awareness, social awareness, self-management, and relationship management. It is hoped that this project will improve emotional intelligence, which directly impacts interdisciplinary communication and produces effective problem solving and improved patient outcomes. The positive social change lies in the ability of the interdisciplinary participants to address stressful events benefitting patients, operating room personnel, and the anesthetist by decreasing negative outcomes and horizontal violence in the operating room. |
