The variables perceived to be important during patient handover by South African prehospital care providers

Makkink, Andrew William; Stein, Christopher; Bruijns, Stevan R.; Gottschalk, Sean

doi:10.1016/j.afjem.2019.01.014

Cited by 11 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…South African emergency care practitioners (ECPs) engage with other members of the healthcare team during patient handover in the emergency department (ED) (Johnston, MacQuarrie & Rae 2014 ). Emergency care practitioners complete a 4-year degree in emergency medical care and rescue at an accredited higher education institution (Makkink et al 2019 ). After completion of the degree, ECPs register with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) and are able to provide emergency and critical care in a wide range of settings, most commonly the pre-hospital setting.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Doctors’, nurses’ and clinical associates’ understanding of emergency care practitioners

Vincent-Lambert

Kotze

2021

Health SA Gesondheid

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Background: Healthcare professionals’ understanding of the knowledge, skills and training of their counterparts from other disciplines cultivates appreciation and respect within the workplace. This, in turn, results in better teamwork and improved patient care. Emergency departments are places where emergency care practitioners (ECPs) engage with doctors, nurses and clinical associates. Whilst the importance of inter-professional communication and teamwork between in-hospital professionals and pre-hospital emergency care providers is acknowledged, no literature could be found describing exactly how much these in-hospital professionals understand about the training and capabilities of their ECP colleagues.Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the level of understanding that prospective doctors, nurses and clinical associates have regarding the training and capabilities of ECPs.Setting: The research was conducted in Johannesburg, South Africa, at two universities.Methods: Seventy-seven participants completed a purpose-designed questionnaire assessing their understanding regarding the education and clinical capabilities of ECPs.Results: In total, 64% of participants demonstrated a poor understanding of the level of education and clinical capabilities of ECPs. The remaining 36% showed only moderate levels of understanding.Conclusion: Medical, nursing and clinical associate graduates have a generally poor understanding of the education and clinical capabilities of their ECP colleagues who practise predominantly in the pre-hospital environment. This lack of understanding can become a barrier to effective communication between ECPs and in-hospital staff during patient handover in emergency departments.Contribution: This research highlights a lack of understanding about the role and function of South African ECPs as pre-hospital emergency care providers and the need for more effective inter-professional education.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Open Access rescue at an accredited higher education institution (Makkink et al 2019). After completion of the degree, ECPs register with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) and are able to provide emergency and critical care in a wide range of settings, most commonly the pre-hospital setting.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Doctors’, nurses’ and clinical associates’ understanding of emergency care practitioners

Vincent-Lambert

Kotze

2021

Health SA Gesondheid

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“…Handover serves to transfer responsibility and accountability for continuity of care from one medical professional to another. The handover process is complete once the receiving medical professional indicates (verbally or in writing) that they have taken over responsibility for the patient' (1). Handover in the emergency setting is essential to continuity of care and has been associated with a high risk of adverse events (2).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Process of Handover in the Busy Emergency Centre: A Pre-Hospital Perspective from Johannesburg, South Africa

Makkink

Stein

Bruijns

2021

Australasian Journal of Paramedicine

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Background Emergency centre handover usually takes place between the pre-hospital emergency care personnel who deliver the handover and the emergency centre personnel who receive the handover. Handover that is not effective may present risks to patient safety. One factor that may affect handover delivery is the process of handover within a busy emergency centre. Methods The data reported on in this study formed the qualitative component of a sequential explanatory mixed methods study. It used face-to-face, semi-structured interviews to gather data. Fifteen interviews were conducted with pre-hospital emergency care personnel from a range of qualification and scopes in South Africa. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and imported into Atlas.ti® for coding and analysis using a qualitative descriptive methodology. Results Pre-hospital emergency care participants identified a lack of emergency centre staff available to receive handover as a barrier to effective handover and attributed this to emergency centres being overworked and understaffed. This potentiated interruptions to handover and having to deliver multiple handovers for the same patient. Pre-hospital emergency care participants indicated a preference for handing over directly to a doctor. Conclusion Several potential process barriers to effective emergency centre handover were identified, including lack of personnel to receive handover, interruptions and the need to perform multiple handovers for the same patient. Generally, these barriers were attributed to the busy understaffed and overworked nature of emergency centres. We would encourage future research in emergency centre handover, specifically from the perspective of the personnel who receive handovers.

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“…In the emergency centre, there are usually two parties involved in patient handover: the prehospital emergency care personnel – who deliver the handover – and the emergency centre personnel – who receive the handover. Some of the important variables in the process have already been defined within this study setting (Makkink et al , 2019). There are also a number of variables related to handover that affect the effectiveness of information transfer.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emergency centre handover from the perspective of prehospital emergency care providers in Johannesburg, South Africa

Makkink

Stein

Bruijns

2021

IJES

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PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe handover in the emergency centre from the perspective of prehospital emergency care providers in Johannesburg, South Africa. Reference to emergency centre handover from the prehospital perspective will have particular relevance to all deliverers of emergency centre handover.Design/methodology/approachA purposive, cross-sectional design addressed the study aim by using a purpose-designed, validated, paper-based questionnaire to collect data relating to prehospital emergency care personnel's perspectives on emergency centre handover.FindingsThere were 175 completed questionnaires collected from South African prehospital personnel within the Johannesburg area. The response rate was 175/290 or 62%. Training on handover was described as poor. There was a general appreciation of mnemonics and how well they ensured that all relevant information was handed over. However, this was countered by poor familiarity of common mnemonics. Perception of the accuracy of their own and observed prehospital handovers was generally positive. Handover length was generally perceived to be appropriate. The qualification of emergency centre personnel was perceived to impact on how handovers were received.Research limitations/implicationsThe study was limited to one geographical area and did not include all potential participants in the study area. The self-reported data collection meant that there was a risk of self-report bias. These factors may have negatively affected the generalisability of the data.Originality/valueThis paper seeks to describe perceptions related to emergency centre handover from the perspective of prehospital emergency care personnel. In doing so, it is postulated that there is the potential to use these findings to improve certain aspects of emergency centre handover.

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The variables perceived to be important during patient handover by South African prehospital care providers

Cited by 11 publications

References 19 publications

Doctors’, nurses’ and clinical associates’ understanding of emergency care practitioners

Doctors’, nurses’ and clinical associates’ understanding of emergency care practitioners

The Process of Handover in the Busy Emergency Centre: A Pre-Hospital Perspective from Johannesburg, South Africa

Emergency centre handover from the perspective of prehospital emergency care providers in Johannesburg, South Africa

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