Conclusions
Neonatal intensive care unit teamwork and safety climate were correlated with healthcare-associated infections but not with other quality metrics. Linkages to clinical measures of quality require additional research.
Results
We found significant variation in clinical and safety culture metrics across NICUs. Neonatal intensive care unit teamwork and safety climate ratings were correlated with absence of healthcare-associated infection (r = 0.39 [P = 0.01] and r = 0.29 [P = 0.05], respectively). None of the other clinical metrics, individual or composite, were significantly correlated with teamwork or safety climate. Conclusions: Neonatal intensive care unit teamwork and safety climate were correlated with healthcare-associated infections but not with other quality metrics. Linkages to clinical measures of quality require additional research.