Improving postoperative handover: a prospective observational study.
BACKGROUND
The information provided during the postoperative handover influences the delivery of care of patients in the postoperative recovery unit through their care on the ward. There is a need for a structured and systematic approach to postoperative handover. The aim of this study was to improve postoperative handover through the implementation of a new handover protocol, which involved a handover proforma and standardization of the handover process.


METHODS
This prospective pre-post intervention study demonstrated the improvement in postoperative handover through standardization. There was a significant reduction in information omissions and task errors and improvement in communication and teamwork with the new handover protocol.


RESULTS
There was a significant reduction in overall information omissions from 9 to 3 (P < .001) omissions per handover and task errors from 2.8 to .8 (P < .001) with the new handover protocol. Teamwork and nurses' satisfaction score significantly improved from a median of 3 to 4 (P < .001) and median of 4 to 5 (P < .001). Duration of handover decreased from a median of 8 to 7 minutes (P < .376).


CONCLUSIONS
The study demonstrates that standardization of postoperative handover improved communication and teamwork and reduced information omissions and task errors. There was an improvement in the quality of the handover after the introduction of the new handover protocol, which was easy and simple to use.
Centre for Patient Safety and Service Quality, Department of Biosurgery and Surgical Technology, Imperial College London, 10th floor, QEQM, St. Mary's Hospital, South Wharf Road, London W2 1NY, UK. Electronic address: kamal.nagpal@lahey.org.
Kamal
K
Nagpal
May
M
Abboudi
Chhavi
C
Manchanda
Amit
A
Vats
Nick
N
Sevdalis
Colin
C
Bicknell
Charles
C
Vincent
Krishna
K
Moorthy
D000368:Aged; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002985:Clinical Protocols; D003142:Communication; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008131:London; D008297:Male; D019300:Medical Errors / Q000517:prevention & control; D008875:Middle Aged; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital; D010348:Patient Care Team; D062209:Patient Handoff / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011182:Postoperative Care; D011446:Prospective Studies; D058996:Quality Improvement
Checklist; Handover; Postoperative handover; Proforma