The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety
A Model for Building a Standardized Hand-off Protocol
Section snippets
Creating a Model for Standardized Handoffs
The handoff can be thought of as a communication of information (content) that can take place through different modalities, which can include a written or verbal component. Two guiding principles underlie this model. First, the standardized protocol for handoffs needs to be tailored to discipline and organization. That is, recognize that what works in one discipline may not work in another, given each discipline’s unique requirements. Furthermore, what constitutes an effective handoff for one
Findings from the University of Chicago Hospitals
We offered the hand-off clinic to individual residencies that take in-house call on an inpatient service. The workshop employs a semistructured interview of residents to do the following:
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Develop a standardized process for the handoff using a process mapping methodology.
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Create a checklist of critical patient content.
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Plan for dissemination and training.
To date, 7 of 10 residency programs have participated. We used process analysis to highlight similarities, differences, and areas for improvement
Conclusion
The model to standardize the handoff has the potential to result in improved patient care. Mapping the process and building a standardized checklist of content can facilitate meeting the Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goal. Using opinion leaders and involving residents can be crucial to the success of disseminating the standardized hand-off protocol to resident physicians in an academic teaching hospital.
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Department Editors: Marcia M. Piotrowski, R.N., M.S., Peter Angood, M.D., Paula Griswold, M.S., Gina Pugliese, R.N., M.S., Sanjay Saint, M.D., M.P.H., Susan E. Sheridan, M.I.M., M.B.A., Kaveh G. Shojania, M.D. Readers may submit National Patient Safety Goals inquiries and submissions to Steven Berman ([email protected]) and Marcia Piotrowski ([email protected]).