MedE-Handover: Development of an electronic handover system to improve the safety and reliability of weekend handover on medical wards in a major acute teaching hospital

Abstract

This project aimed to develop a robust and effective handover system to standardise the transfer of information between wards and out-of-hours clinicians, thus improving continuity of care and patient safety on medical wards. Electronic handover tools have been advocated as a potential strategy for enhancing the quality of handover. This project saw the design of a locally peer-reviewed Microsoft Excel database entitled ‘MedE-Handover’ which included scripts allowing semi-automation and standardisation of handover data. Replacing uncoordinated handwritten notes previously compiled separately by …