547 - Stronger Together: Building High-Impact Multidisciplinary Teams in Healthcare

In this episode of Talking HealthTech, Peter Birch speaks with Bettina McMahon (CEO of HealthDirect Australia), Sanka Amadoru (Geriatrician and Founding Director of ARIA Health), and Elise Ford (Account Manager at Informedix) about the challenges and opportunities involved in building and sustaining multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) in healthcare.

They explore approaches to fostering effective collaboration across hospitals, the community, and aged care settings, examining the key barriers such as siloed systems, workforce shortages, and the evolving role of technology, including AI.

This episode was recorded live online as part of a special session with Talking HealthTech company partners, Infomedix.

Key Takeaways

🗨️ Barriers to MDT Effectiveness: The panel discusses the main obstacles to effective multidisciplinary teams, with the majority of the audience survey identifying siloed systems, data, and technology as the biggest barrier, followed by poor communication and unclear team roles.

🧑‍🤝‍👩 The Consumer-Centred Approach: Future-ready teams will need to be structured around patient-centred care. Consumers are increasingly expecting to be active participants, managing their own health conditions with support from their care teams, technology, and peer communities.

👨‍💻 Integration of Technology: Technology is seen as essential for providing visibility and coordination across MDTs. However, it's stressed that technology solutions must align with the real-world workflow of clinical teams and shouldn’t add unnecessary administrative burden.

🤖 Role of AI in Healthcare Teams: There is optimism about the potential for AI to augment MDTs, from triaging patients to supporting decision-making. However, adoption must be pragmatic, with safety, trust, and workforce adaptation in focus.

🔍 Evolving Models of Care: The panel highlights real-world MDT case studies in settings like ‘Better at Home’ rehabilitation, aged care, and digital health navigation, underscoring both successful integrations and ongoing gaps, especially where external providers or systems remain siloed.

🩺 Pragmatism and Flexibility: The importance of practical flexibility in MDTs is emphasised, both in adapting to unique patient needs and in navigating imperfect or incomplete technology solutions.

💼 Workforce Pressures and Training: The growing demands on the healthcare workforce, particularly in nursing, are creating urgency for technology to take on a greater role. The significance of digital literacy and ongoing professional development is also explored.

Check out the episode and full show notes on the Talking HealthTech website.

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