Implementation of SBAR communication mode in handover of postoperative patients from operating room to intensive care unit

Abstract

Objective To explore the effect of situation-background-assessment-recommendation (SBAR) communication mode in handover of postoperative patients from operating room (OR) to intensive care unit (ICU) . Methods From March 2015 to June 2015, 32 postoperative patients form OR to ICU were recruited in compared group where traditional handover was used. Forty-four patients were then recruited in intervention group since October 2015 to June 2016 where SBAR handover mode was implemented. In intervention group, SBAR handover mode and SBAR handover sheet was build based on previous research as well as training was done for handover nurses. The quality of handover prior to and after the implementation of SBAR handover mode was compared. The degree of recalled information of handover and the proportion of incident reports due to communication errors, as well as the duration of handover were calculated. Results The quality of handover improved from (64.20±2.09) to (71.13±3.10) after the implementation of SBAR handover mode (t=10.15, P<0.01) . The degree of recalled information of handover increased from 88.25% to 94.55% for handover nurses (χ2=6.73, P<0.01) while the duration of handover shorted from (18.97±2.12) min to (13.34±2.47) min (t=10.41, P<0.01) . Conclusions SBAR handover mode is able to improve the quality and timeliness of handover which can further ensure the accuracy and integrity of handover information and worth popularizing. Key words: Situation-background-assessment-recommendation communication mode; Patient transfer; Intensiue care unit; Handover