Daily huddle best practice: An Evidence‐Based guide

Abstract

BackgroundDaily huddles positively influence staff satisfaction and perception; standardization of a daily huddle should be prioritized to benefit from its effects.AimThe aim of this project initiative was to implement an evidence‐based, standardized daily huddle on an inpatient medical‐surgical oncology unit.Implementation PlanA searchable question was developed, and the identified literature was critically appraised and synthesized for evidence‐based recommendations. The recommendations for the structure and content of a daily huddle were implemented using a standardized format.OutcomesPre‐implementation and post‐implementation staff perception and satisfaction surveys yielded positive results. Improvements in effective communication and staff satisfaction were identified.Implications for PracticeAn effective daily huddle is essential for communicating pertinent information that can affect workflows and patient safety, as well as promoting teamwork and staff satisfaction.

Impacts of Huddle Intervention on the Patient Safety Culture of Medical Team Members in Medical Ward: One-Group Pretest-Posttest Design

“…The latest huddle practice evidence recommends conducting structured daily huddle, use of a huddle-guiding tool, same time and location and no longer than 15 min, [1][2][3][4] provides team members with regular meetings each day to connect with each other, to brief periodic reports and to engage frontline staff with leaders to discuss existing or emerging patient safety issues. 5 Huddle also supports open communication among clinical, administrative, and technical staff with a blame-free culture that allows for changes to daily workflow, manages crises beforehand, and makes adjustments to improve patient accessibility and staff quality of life.…”

“…17 A recent systematic review concluded that "the present body of research related to such huddles demonstrates a generally positive impact on safety". 1,18 Despite the evidence on the impact of huddles on patient outcomes and patient satisfaction, 1,8 there is a dearth of literature on the impact of huddles on health care team members' safety attitudes and their associated factors. However, there is currently no medical unit in Taiwan that uses huddle intervention to explore related research on patient safety culture.…”