DNP 716 Module 6 Team Leadership Discussion Example

Reviewed by Ingrid Vasterling, MSN, RN Arizona State University Updated October 2026

This DNP 716 Module 6 sample is the team leadership discussion in Leadership of Innovation in Health Care, a Doctor of Nursing Practice course at ASU. ASU DNP 716 asks students in this module to evaluate collaborative teamwork, relationships within and across professions, and how teamwork affects quality and safety. The composite ICU nurse manager reflects on her unit's daily interprofessional rounds, which she realized were a series of separate reports rather than shared decision making. She uses teamwork research to name what was missing, describes two changes the team made and their early effects, asks the group a question and replies to two classmates.

CourseDNP 716 Leadership of Innovation in Health Care
ModuleModule 6
Paper typeReflection and discussion post with replies
LengthAbout 412 words, 4 pages
FormatAPA 7 student paper
SchoolArizona State University
ProgramDoctor of Nursing Practice
UpdatedOctober 2026

Free sample paper for DNP 716 Module 6

1

Rounds Without a Team: Reflecting on Interprofessional Teamwork in an ICU

Student Name

Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, Arizona State University

DNP 716: Leadership of Innovation in Health Care

Instructor Name

Month Day, Year

What this page is doingThe title names the gap the reflection explores, a meeting that looks like teamwork but is not.
2

Rounds Without a Team: Reflecting on Interprofessional Teamwork in an ICU

Initial Post

Every morning in our ICU, a physician, a nurse, a pharmacist, a respiratory therapist and sometimes a dietitian stand outside each room for rounds. For a long time I thought this was teamwork. This module made me look again. In practice, each person gave a report in turn, the physician made decisions, and the nurse often left without knowing the plan for the day. The patient's family was rarely included.

A review of decades of teamwork research in health care concludes that teamwork is not simply people working near each other; it depends on shared goals, clear roles, communication that is closed-loop, mutual support and team learning, and that teamwork training and structured tools are associated with better safety and quality (Rosen et al., 2018). Salas et al. (2005) add that coordinating mechanisms, especially shared mental models, closed-loop communication and mutual trust, allow team behaviors to work. Measured against these ideas, our rounds lacked a shared mental model: no one summarized the plan at the end, so each discipline left with its own version.

Psychological safety was also weak. Newer nurses told me they rarely questioned a plan on rounds, even when they had concerns. Edmondson (1999) found more learning behavior in teams where people felt safe to raise concerns, which in our setting means catching problems before they harm patients.

We made two changes. First, the bedside nurse now presents first and ends rounds by reading back the day's goals, using a short goals sheet. Second, the attending physician closes each patient's discussion by asking, "What are we missing?" After two months, nurses report knowing the daily plan more often, and the pharmacist says medication questions are raised earlier. These are early observations; we plan to measure them formally with a short survey of each discipline after rounds.

Question for the group: how have you included patients and families in interprofessional rounds without making them longer?

What this page is doingThe post judges the writer's own rounds against named teamwork concepts, finds the missing shared mental model, and reports two changes with early results described honestly as observations.
3

Reply to a Classmate (Emergency Nurse Practitioner)

You described huddles that work well in your emergency department because everyone stands at the same board. That shared visual might be what our rounds lacked. Do you assign someone to update the board during the huddle?

Reply to a Classmate (Nurse Educator)

You raised a point that is often overlooked: conflict between experienced and new nurses inside the same profession. Teamwork research focuses on disciplines, but some of our quietest voices are within nursing.

What this page is doingEach reply links the classmate's experience back to a gap the writer found on rounds, so the thread builds rather than restating the post.
4

References

Edmondson, A. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350-383. https://doi.org/10.2307/2666999

Rosen, M. A., DiazGranados, D., Dietz, A. S., Benishek, L. E., Thompson, D., Pronovost, P. J., & Weaver, S. J. (2018). Teamwork in healthcare: Key discoveries enabling safer, high-quality care. American Psychologist, 73(4), 433-450. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000298

Salas, E., Sims, D. E., & Burke, C. S. (2005). Is there a "big five" in teamwork? Small Group Research, 36(5), 555-599. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046496405277134

What the DNP 716 Module 6 instructions ask for

This second board, like the first, is worth 30 points and mixes reflection with discussion. It falls in Weeks 10 to 12, the team leadership module, whose outcome is to evaluate principles of collaborative teamwork within a healthcare team, including inter- and intraprofessional relationship management and the impact of teamwork on quality and safety. Faculty supply prompts in Canvas. Expect to reflect on a team you lead or belong to, apply teamwork evidence and engage classmates. The executive summary on leading teams is due in the same module, so the discussion can help you test ideas for it. Connect this discussion to your leading teams executive summary if you can, since both draw on the same module readings and ideas.

How the DNP 716 Module 6 example is put together

The post begins with an honest description of a familiar routine and then reexamines it through the module's lens. Two sources supply the elements of effective teamwork, which the writer uses as a checklist to find what her rounds lacked. A third source explains why speaking up matters for safety. Two specific changes and their early effects show action, and the writer labels the results as observations rather than outcomes. The question invites practical answers. Replies connect classmates' experiences to the writer's problem and add an intraprofessional angle. Early results are described as observations rather than proof, which is honest about what two months of informal feedback can show.

Where the marks sit in the DNP 716 Module 6 rubric

For the teamwork dialogue, grades reflect correct use of teamwork research, honest reflection on the student's team, attention to inter- and intraprofessional relationships, connection to quality and safety, practical application and substantive replies. Faculty look for students who evaluate a real team against criteria rather than describing it. Changes with early results show leadership. Distinguishing observations from measured outcomes shows rigor. Replies that bring in new dimensions, such as relationships within nursing, enrich the dialogue. Clear writing and citations complete the post. Faculty reward posts that move beyond describing a team to evaluating it against criteria and then changing something specific.

DNP 716 Module 6 help with common mistakes

Teamwork posts often praise a team without evaluating it. Choose criteria from a source and test your team against them. Another weakness is ignoring safety; explain how teamwork problems could affect patients. Describe what you changed or would change. Send the desk your prompt if you would like help with the teamwork reflection. Ask a member of another discipline on your team how they see the team before you write; their answer often reveals what you cannot see from your own role. Keep replies specific to what classmates wrote. Ask one teammate from another discipline to read your post before you submit it, and note whether they see the team the same way you do.

Write yours, or have the desk draft it

This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Arizona State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.

More DNP 716 and Doctor of Nursing Practice sample papers

DNP 716 Module 6 questions, answered

Where can I find a free DNP 716 Module 6 sample paper?

The team leadership discussion above is complete: ICU interprofessional rounds evaluated against teamwork research, two changes with early effects, and two replies.

What does the DNP 716 team leadership module cover?

Collaborative teamwork, inter- and intraprofessional relationships and the impact of teamwork on quality and safety.

What makes interprofessional rounds effective?

Shared goals, clear roles, closed-loop communication, a shared plan at the end and members who feel safe to speak up.

What is a shared mental model?

A common understanding among team members of the task, the plan and each other's roles.

How many points is the second DNP 716 discussion board?

Each of the two discussion boards is worth 30 points.