Effectiveness of a course designed to teach handoffs to medical students.
BACKGROUND
Handoffs of patient care are increasingly common and are known to contribute to medical errors. A significant number, if not the large majority, of first-year Internal Medicine residents have not received formal education pertaining to handoffs during medical school.


OBJECTIVE
To develop a program designed to teach handoffs to medical students entering their fourth year of training.


METHODS
University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine.


METHODS
Our Handoff Selective was first offered in April 2007 as part of a 2-week Integrated Clinician's Course conducted once yearly between the third and fourth years of medical school. The Selective consisted of a didactic session in which communication theory and elements were discussed and a practicum in which students used faculty-developed case scenarios to practice both giving and receiving handoffs.


RESULTS
Sixty (the maximum number of spots available) out of 150 students participated in the course, although many more students chose the course than spots available. Prior to taking the Selective, medical students' confidence in performing handoffs was poor, but it improved after the course (P < 0.001); 92% of students felt the Handoff Selective was "useful" or "extremely useful." While both components of the course were thought to be useful to the large majority of students, the practicum portion was thought to be more useful (P < 0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
Formal education on handoffs is well received by medical students and improves their self-perceived understanding and performance of handoffs.
Chu
Eugene S
ES
Department of Medicine, Denver Health Medical Center, Denver, Colorado 80204-4507, USA. eugene.chu@dhha.org
Reid
Mark
M
Burden
Marisha
M
Mancini
Diana
D
Schulz
Tara
T
Keniston
Angela
A
Sarcone
Ellen
E
Albert
Richard K
RK
D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D003120:Colorado; D003142:Communication; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D019300:Medical Errors / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015397:Program Evaluation