BMJ quality & safety
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BMJ quality & safety · Dec 2012
The collaborative communication model for patient handover at the interface between high-acuity and low-acuity care.
Cross-unit handovers transfer responsibility for the patient among healthcare teams in different clinical units, with missed information, potentially placing patients at risk for adverse events. ⋯ The limited common ground reduced the likelihood of correct interpretation of important handover information, which may contribute to adverse events. Collaborative design and use of a shared set of handover content items may assist in creating common ground to enable clinical teams to communicate effectively to help increase the reliability and safety of cross-unit handovers.