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The application of a standardized handoff approach in a community hospital setting
Dissertation   Open access

The application of a standardized handoff approach in a community hospital setting

Rebecca D. Hartley
Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.), Drexel University
Sep 2018
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/dtn2-9042
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Abstract

Nursing--Practice Continuum of care Health care teams Nursing
Handoffs are the transfer of care, involving communication of important clinical information, transfer of responsibility, and collaboration between clinicians, assuring safe transfer of care from one clinician or department to another. Inadequate handoffs may result in serious events that compromise patient outcomes and influence care provider's perceptions of handoff processes. Handoff communication stood as a critical patient safety issue and was identified as being an area of risk at the project organization. This risk was associated with inconsistent phone report processes and low scores concerning handoffs on the AHRQ Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture. Using the Plan, Do, Study, Act quality improvement cycle, this project focused on the implementation of an evidenced-based standardized handoff tool to provide consistency in information transfer from the Emergency Department to the Medical Unit or Surgical Unit; and the Post Anesthesia Care Unit to the Surgical Unit. The goal of this project was to streamline processes, reduce waste. and promote quality communication of essential care elements to improve nurse's perceptions of handoff transitions. As a part of this process, direct care nurses were involved in developing and implementing the handoff tool, with the goal of improving staff perceptions of handoff processes using the AHRQ Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture handoff and transition survey questions to evaluate the outcomes of quality improvement project. Results reflected no statistical change in any of the four handoff questions, although qualitative feedback did suggest positive implications associated with the implementation of the new handoff standard work. Keywords: patient handoff, clinical competence, quality of care, nurse perceptions

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