Description
During a recent group assignment on addressing the outbreak of invasive meningococcal disease, I collaborated with other participants to conduct individual research, analysis, and presentation of a coordinated public health action. The development of the original research on transmission routes, vaccination procedures, and infection control measures was my primary contribution. I equally assisted in aligning our findings to a socio-ecological model to help the project to reflect richness. In this connection, I also helped them with editing and polishing the final copy to ensure the same tone of academic work (Baloche et al., 2024).
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Feelings
Initially, I was unsure about the distribution of roles, as everyone had strong opinions on the next steps. Once roles were clearly defined, I felt more confident. I appreciated exploring evidence, particularly because of my personal interest in communicable diseases and epidemiology. At times, deadlines were stressful, especially when waiting for others' contributions. However, I felt proud when we completed the project together and produced a professional final version (Guedes et al., 2022).
Evaluation
Our group’s strength was the diversity of perspectives. Some members focused on details, while others worked on structure and flow. This combination made our project stronger than if one person had worked alone. Peer support was important: when one member struggled with academic referencing, others helped them. Challenges included missed meetings and occasional conflict due to differing work styles, especially near deadlines. The other aspect of the group process to be evaluated was the balance between collaboration and individuality. Although the group achieved a great performance, individually, some of us, including myself, felt overwhelmed at times when the group was dominated by the vocal individuals when it came to steering the discussions (Loud et al., 2024). This gave slight discrepancies in the decision-making process, and at other instances, it suppressed creativity. It did not fail to mention, though, that groups are inclined to gravitate toward natural leaders and that managerial skills, such as negotiating skills, are needed to address this problem. In our work, the technology was ambiguous. Publication of Google Docs, which are shared online resources, assists in facilitating the real-time editing, being open, and aids in the eradication of duplication. However, technological glitches and a range of different levels of computer fluency were occasionally exasperating. This proved that successful group work is due not only to the desire to cooperate but also to the general competence in the use of digital tools. One of the other strengths was peer learning. Contributing to one another has enriched what I was tasked to do as a researcher, offering me a wider perspective of how people respond to public health. Simultaneously, I realized that there were also inconsistencies in academic writing styles to which I had to devote additional effort to maintain coherence.
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Analysis
I observed that effective cooperation relied on everyone understanding expectations. Setting early deadlines and dividing roles helped us work efficiently, aligning with group dynamics theory that clear roles improve performance. Emotional factors were significant; frustration from delays was reduced by encouragement and support. Feeling psychologically safe encouraged greater participation. Personally, I tended to coordinate and ensure progress, which strengthened my leadership skills but also increased my stress by making me feel responsible for the entire project. The other aspect of the group process to be evaluated was the balance between collaboration and individuality. Although the group achieved a great performance, individually, some of us, including myself, felt overwhelmed at times when the group was dominated by the vocal individuals when it came to steering the discussions. This created minor inequalities during the decision-making process, and on other occasions, it suppressed creativity. It did not neglect to mention, though, that groups have an inclination to lean towards natural leaders and that skills in negotiation are required to control this aspect. We used technology ambivalently in our work. Google Docs works that are shared online serve to create the opportunity to edit in real-time and be transparent, and reduce duplication. Nevertheless, technical issues and different levels of digital literacy were rather irritating occasionally. This was the evidence that effective collaboration in a group is not only the willingness to cooperate but also the overall ability to use digital tools. The other strengths included peer learning. Offering contributions to each other has enriched what I was assigned as a researcher, providing me with a broader view of the responses of people towards the collective health (Marquardt et al., 2023).
Conclusion
Patience, flexibility and tolerance in group work is one lesson that was learnt. When there were delays in deadline reasons, I could work to be more demanding and I was involved in creating and revising of the proposed contents. I played an important role in the development and editing of content; however, I overcame the reluctance to be more assertive when there were delays in meeting deadlines. I also realised that as much as knowledge and skills can be shared during teamwork, dependence on the promptness and the incentive of other team members is formed. I got self-confidence that I can lead and cooperate, but I also learnt that I should stay strong in both leadership and self-care.
Action plan
Concerning future group work, I will establish better boundaries by clarifying my position initially and making other people accountable. As well, I will provide frequent check-ins that I will suggest to ensure communication and minimize the pressure at the end. In case of difficulties, I would bring them up in a respectful manner instead of letting the additional work pass silently. I am also planning to enhance my active listening capacity so that I may be able to learn more about the concerns of group members. On the individual level, I will want to manage time more effectively by making sure that I complete my assignments at a higher level and leave myself with a bit of time in case coordination between groups becomes a problem. Finally, I will focus on the principle of collaborative skills, as teamwork is crucial not only in the realm of academia, but also in the work practice of public health, when interdisciplinary teamwork should be employed in real crises, namely, the outbreak of diseases, which has already happened.
References
- Baloche, A., Bedouch, P., Carrouel, F., Argaud, L., Kolev, K., Mortamet, G., Schwebel, C., Mick, G., & Dussart, C. (2024). Follow-up care experience of patients with invasive meningococcal disease and their family caregivers: a qualitative study. BMC Infectious Diseases, 24(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-024-09860-6
- Guedes, S., Bricout, H., Langevin, E., Tong, S., & Bertrand-Gerentes, I. (2022). Epidemiology of invasive meningococcal disease and sequelae in the United Kingdom during the period 2008 to 2017 – a secondary database analysis. BMC Public Health, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-12933-3
- Loud, E., Clark, S. A., Edwards, D. S., Knapper, E., Emmett, L., Ladhani, S., & Campbell, H. (2024). Serogroup B Invasive meningococcal disease in older adults identified by genomic surveillance, England, 2022–2023. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 30(5). https://doi.org/10.3201/eid3005.231714
- Marquardt, T. J., Hanson, J., Preston-Thomas, A., Thirlwell, C., Kakkanat, A., & Goncalves, N. (2023). Public health response to an outbreak of meningococcal B disease in a secondary school in Far North Queensland. Communicable Diseases Intelligence, 47. https://doi.org/10.33321/cdi.2023.47.50
