Journal of advanced nursing
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Multicenter Study
The effectiveness of bedside handovers: A multilevel, longitudinal study of effects on nurses and patients.
To investigate the effectiveness of bedside handovers. For nurses, effects on nurse-patient communication, individualized care, coordination of the care process, job satisfaction, intention to leave, patient participation and work interruptions were measured. For patients, effects on patient activation, individualized care and quality of care were measured. ⋯ The results indicate that bedside handover can be regarded as superior to more commonly used handover models as it enhances patient participation and decreases work interruptions. However, the positive image of bedside handovers, mostly based on observational, short-term and single-centred experiences, cannot be confirmed as there were no effects on any of the other measured parameters. As bedside handovers put patient participation on the agenda and negative effects are absent, implementing bedside handovers should be considered a mean for more patient-centeredness instead of a goal itself.