Intershift verbal handover : an observational study

Abstract

The verbal handover has been traditionally considered fundamental to good nursing practice. During handover, adequate information about patient care and ward activity should be handed over from one shift of nurses to the next, to allow them to perform their work safely and effectively. A non-participant observational study, using an observation schedule, was carried out to observe the process of the morning handover in a general surgical ward. Twelve consecutive morning handovers were observed and data from the last ten observations were kept for final analysis. The objectives of the study were to time the length of the verbal handovers, to identify the members participating, to listen to the content of patient information being handed over, to determine any other functions of the handover and to record any interruptions or other activities occurring during the handover. The handovers observed were found to be very short and speedy, with minimal discussion. The information conveyed was mainly retrospective, dealing with nursing care already undertaken. The majority of care addressed was physical and a negligible amount was mentioned on other aspects of care, such as psychological care, spiritual care and discharge planning. Several interruptions were observed to occur and the findings appear to show a direct proportional relationship between the length of handover and interruptions occurring. Considering the handovers observed were so short, further research could be carried out to analyse what is actually documented in the written nursing report.