| Summary: | Introduction: Cleft care services in the UK have been reconfigured since the Clinical Standards Advisory Group (CSAG) study in 1998. The aim of this study was to assess the implementation of these recommendations 12 years on and to investigate individual members' perceptions of teamwork within their multidisciplinary cleft teams. Methods: Members from each specialty in each UK cleft team were asked to complete self- administered postal questionnaires enquiring about provision of cleft services and their perceptions of teamwork within their own teams. Cleft team questionnaires asked about the cleft service, team coordination, hearing, orthodontics, paediatric dentistry, primary cleft surgery, psychology, restorative dentistry, secondary surgery, specialist cleft nursing and speech and language therapy. Team Work Assessments (TWAs) assessed seven constructs of teamwork using an established 55-item questionnaire (Team STEPPS). Data was analysed using Stata and described using median scores and ranges. Results: Responses were received from members of every cleft team. 128/150 cleft team questionnaires were returned (85% response rate) and 101/138 TWAs (73% response rate). UK cleft services have been restructured to eleven centralised services with sixteen primary operative sites and at least 51 peripheral sites. All services provide care using a multidisciplinary team (MOT) model but the composition of each team and specialty attendance at MOT clinics varies. Data related to the structure and function of MOT's is presented and compared with the CSAG recommendations. Overall, team members' perceive that their teams work well but variations exist within constructs of teamworking. Conclusion: UK cleft services have been reconfigured and are providing care using an MOT model. Most of the CSAG recommendations have been achieved and cleft team members.
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