Journal of patient safety
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Journal of patient safety · Sep 2020
Improving Patient Safety in Handover From Intensive Care Unit to General Ward: A Systematic Review.
Despite of the increasing knowledge about patient safety improvements in the handover process in hospitals, we still lack knowledge about what magnitude of patient safety gains can be expected from improvements in handover between the intensive care unit (ICU) and the general ward. The aim of this systematic review was to investigate which handover tools are devised and evaluated with the aim of improving patient safety in the handover process from ICU to ward and whether the described handover tools fulfill their purpose. ⋯ Not many well-conducted studies can shed light on this important topic. Giving patients and their families a supplementary written or verbal status report before transfer might improve patient safety. The introduction of a Liaison Nurse may be effective in improving communication between ICU and ward staff, which might reduce risks in patient safety. However, there is no evidence of improved mortality and/or readmission rates after introducing handover tools in the transfer from ICU to ward.