title: Design and trial of a new ambulance-to-emergency department handover protocol: 'IMIST-AMBO'.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Information communicated by ambulance paramedics to Emergency Department (ED) staff during handover of patients has been found to be inconsistent and incomplete, and yet has major implications for patients' subsequent hospital treatment and trajectory of care.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The study's aims were to: (1) identify the existing structure of paramedic-to-emergency staff handovers by video recording and analysing them; (2) involve practitioners in reflecting on practice using the footage; (3) combine those reflections with formal analyses of these filmed handovers to design a handover protocol; (4) trial-run the protocol; and (5) assess the protocol's enactment.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was a 'video-reflexive ethnography' involving: structured analysis of videoed handovers (informed by ED clinicians' and ambulance paramedics' comments); ED clinicians and ambulance paramedics viewing their own practices; and rapid at-work training and feedback for paramedics. A five-question pre- and post-survey measured ED triage nurses' perceptions of the new protocol's impact. In total, 137 pre- and post-handovers were filmed involving 291 staff, and 368 staff were educated in the use of the new protocol.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was agreement that Identification of the patient, Mechanism/medical complaint, Injuries/information relative to the complaint, Signs, vitals and GCS, Treatment and trends/response to treatment, Allergies, Medications, Background history and Other (social) information (IMIST-AMBO) was the preferred protocol for non-trauma and trauma handovers. Uptake of IMIST-AMBO showed improvements: a greater volume of information per handover that was more consistently ordered; fewer questions from ED staff; a reduction in handover duration; and fewer repetitions by both paramedics and ED clinicians that may suggest improved recipient comprehension and retention.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  IMIST-AMBO shows promise for improving the ambulance-ED handover communication interface. Involving paramedics and ED clinicians in its development enhanced the resulting protocol, strengthened ED clinicians' and ambulance paramedics' sense of ownership over the protocol and bolstered their peers' willingness to adopt it.
authors.affiliation: University of Technology Sydney, Centre for Health Communication, PO Box 123, Broadway NSW 2007, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia. r.iedema@uts.edu.au
authors.forename: Rick
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Iedema
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ball
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Daly
authors.forename: Jacinta
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Young
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Green
authors.forename: Paul M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Middleton
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Foster-Curry
authors.forename: Marea
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hoy
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Comerford
mesh_terms: D000552:Ambulances / Q000458:organization & administration*; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D057189:Checklist; D002985:Clinical Protocols; D003142:Communication; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D062209:Patient Handoff / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*