Nursing handovers as resilient points of care: linking handover strategies to treatment errors in the patient care in the following shift

Abstract

Nursing handover is an opportunity for nurses to prevent errors and unsafe practice by implementing more risk-aware handover strategies. Implications for facilitating the use of such strategies are discussed.

The art of oral handovers: A participant observational study by undergraduate students in a hospital setting

“…Using a familiar oral handover structure gave the oncoming team a better grasp of the situation and made it easier to ask questions. In the literature, different handover models have been proposed to promote patient safety, reduce errors of omission and enhance the reliability of information transfer (Anderson et al., ; Drach‐Zahavy & Hadid, ; Johnson et al., ). Instead of looking for one model that can fit all handover situations, it is now argued that the structure of a handover should be tailored to the context of the clinical area and the needs of the staff members and that each unit should agree on which structure works best for the team (Staggers & Blaz, ).…”

“…An incomplete and poor handover can be dangerous for the patients’ safety (Mayor et al., ; Street et al., ). Thus, an oral handover is risky in the care process because information can be inaccurate, lost, distorted or misinterpreted (Drach‐Zahavy & Hadid, ; Holly & Poletick, ).…”

Factors affecting quality of nurse shift handover in the emergency department

“…Nurse managers and leaders should promote positive relationships among staff. This can be achieved through the implementation of team‐building interventions such as TeamSTEPPS (Drach‐Zahavy & Hadid, ; Feraco et al., ), and through the promotion of a collegial work environment. Avoiding the use of agency or temporary staff may also improve continuity and opportunities for staff to build relationships.…”

“…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., ).…”