Improving the quality of the operating room to intensive care unit handover at an urban teaching hospital through a bundled intervention

Factors affecting quality of nurse shift handover in the emergency department

“…Recent literature suggests that bundling several handover intervention strategies (such as mnemonic devices, team training etc.) may lead to improved handover (e.g., Feraco et al., ; Moon et al., ). As such, administrators and leaders should consider implementing multi‐pronged approaches that include the aforementioned factors to improve handover quality.…”

“…Internationally, handover communication is an important aspect of providing safe patient care, yet researchers have suggested that handover communication is often incomplete and/or inaccurate (Kerr, Lu, McKinlay, & Fuller, ; McCloughen, O'Brien, Gillies, & McSherry, ; Meissner et al., ; Ong, Biomede, & Coiera, ). It has been documented that poor quality or ineffective shift handover can result in negative consequences for patients, staff and healthcare organizations (Australian Council for Safety and Quality in Health Care, , Drach‐Zahavy & Hadid, ; Kitch et al., ; Meissner et al., ; Moon, Gonzales, Woods, & Fox, ). Although there is considerable literature addressing factors that influence handover quality or effectiveness, few studies have empirically tested those factors.…”

“…This is attributed to the chaotic and erratic nature of the environment where patient volumes are irregular, there are frequently multiple caregivers for a single patient and numerous transfers occurring within and out of the department (Baker, ; Klim et al., ; Lawrence, Tomolo, Garlisi, & Aron, ; Ong et al., ). Recent literature suggests that handover communication at shift change is a vulnerable activity that may pose challenges to patient safety (Drach‐Zahavy & Hadid, ; Moon et al., ). Poor quality shift handover has been associated with adverse outcomes such as incorrect treatment, delays in diagnosis, increased length of stay and both nurse and patient dissatisfaction (Apker, Mallak, & Gibson, ; Funk et al., ; Kitch et al., ; Meissner et al., ; Moon et al., ).…”

“…Recent literature suggests that handover communication at shift change is a vulnerable activity that may pose challenges to patient safety (Drach‐Zahavy & Hadid, ; Moon et al., ). Poor quality shift handover has been associated with adverse outcomes such as incorrect treatment, delays in diagnosis, increased length of stay and both nurse and patient dissatisfaction (Apker, Mallak, & Gibson, ; Funk et al., ; Kitch et al., ; Meissner et al., ; Moon et al., ).…”

“…A literature review by Foster and Manser () found that seven of twelve studies using standardized handover sheets reported significant improvements in outcomes such as information retention and adverse events. Similarly, use of structured handover tools has shown positive results in improving perceptions of handover effectiveness or quality when included as part of a bundle of handover interventions (Feraco et al., ; Funk et al., ; Moon et al., ).…”