Here are 17 tools designed to improve patient handoffs.
5Ps for Patient Handoffs. SafetyFirst offers the 5Ps for Patient Handoffs worksheet and flier to ensure an efficient and effective patient handoff.
Acute care toolkit 1: Handover. The Royal College of Physicians developed the "Acute care toolkit 1: Handover" to guide healthcare institutions when developing patient handoff guidelines.
Digital Nurse Assistant. Xerox Healthcare Provider Solutions group developed Digital Nurse Assistant in partnership with PARC for nurses to automate tasks they often handle by hand, such as prioritizing nurse responsibilities while new orders come in.
CLINIC SAFE handoffs pocket card. The University of Chicago Medical Center developed this guide to safe end-of-year patient handoffs and The Picker Institute offers a free pocket card of the CLINIC SAFE handoff tips. The tips include notifying patients, looking over patient panels and identifying high-risk patients.
Communication Errors Poster. Health Inspirations offers a poster detailing the Joint Commission's requirements for patient handoffs to reduce the risk of errors. The poster reminds providers to to read back and verify telephone orders and test results.
Handoff Communication: Safe Transitions in Patient Care. Global Edition released the Handoff Communication: Safe Transitions in Patient Care in 2007. The first chapter includes guidance on creating and achieving patient handoff goals.
Hand-Off Communications Poster. Health Inspirations developed a poster highlighting the critical communication steps for patient handoffs using the I-PASS method.
Hand-off Communications. This publication outlines recommendations for patient handoffs and developing patient handoff policies.
I-PASS. The I-PASS Study Group developed the I-PASS Handoff Bundled to teach a standardized approach to patient handoffs in the inpatient setting. The tool includes a core resident workshop, simulation exercises, computer module, campaign toolkit and additional faculty development resources and observation tools.
Patient Hand-Off/Over Tool Kit. AORN collaborated with the U.S. Department of Defense Patient Safety Program to develop the Patient Hand-Off/Over Tool Kit based on the DoD Patient Safety Program TeamSTEPPS initiative for consistent communications during patient care. The components include communication tools, handoff policy guidance and additional educational resources.
Medications at Transitions and Clinical Handoffs Toolkit. The Medications at Transitions and Clinical Handoffs Toolkit was developed by Gary Noskin, MD, and Kristine Gleason of Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago as a collaboration between Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine and The Joint Commission. The toolkit includes experiences and lessons from healthcare facilities as well as MATCH strategies for improving the medication reconciliation process.
Nurse-to-Nurse Hand-Off Communication Audit Tool. The New England Alliance for Health developed this tool to help institutions assess whether the handoff occurred effectively based on the correct protocol and systematic approach.
Safer Sign Out. The Emergency Medicine Patient Safety Foundation developed Safer Sign Out as a patient-centered, team based approach to improve safety and reliability during patient handoffs. The Safer Sign Out protocol is designed to reduce risk during the handoff process and increase patient satisfaction.
Smart Sign Out. Smart Sign Out is an iPad and web-based app for the patient handoff system. The tool organizes and structures patient data in a clear, consistent way so providers have the ability to rapidly extract data to make patient care decisions.
SOS: The Physician Standard. Kolkin's SOS: The Physician Standard is a workflow solution designed to help healthcare professionals share information in a HIPAA compliant way. Users can instantly create, edit and share best practice guidelines.
Targeted Solutions Tool for Hand-off Communications. The Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare developed the Hand-off Communications Targeted Solutions Tool after launching the Hand-off Communications project in 2009. The tool is designed to examine current handoff communications, provide measurements to produce data that will lead to process improvement, identify areas for improvement and provide guidelines for appropriate handoff communication processes.
TransformativeMed. TransformativeMed develops technology to improve provider efficiency and patient outcomes. The company's handoff and rounding solution is designed to capture the patient's records within the context of the Problem-Oriented Medical Record.