CRII: CHS: Toward Meaningful Information Transfer: Role of Interdepartmental Communication

University Of Illinois At Chicago, Chicago IL

Investigators

Abstract

This study advances the development of new collaborative communication tools that promote effective handoffs, assesses the use of these tools to streamline communication, and contributes to a medical school and health informatics curricula of handoff strategies to improve collaboration. Handoffs are a shift-based communication activity in round-the-clock settings such as space mission controls, nuclear power plants, and healthcare settings that help in maintaining the continuity of work activities. In healthcare settings, patient handoffs involve the transfer of information, responsibility and authority, from one care provider to another. Despite their importance, patient handoffs are often of poor quality leading to adverse events and patient harm. To improve handoff quality, structured handoff tools should be used for ensuring consistent communication between care providers. However, we know very little about how such structured tools support collaborative communication between care providers. This study will conduct a systematic evaluation of handoff communication at two acute care settings to characterize the role of structured handoff tools for sustaining collaborative activities. This multi-site pilot study will investigate the impact of standardized handoff tools on: (a) effective information transfer, (b) symmetric and balanced social interaction, and (c) resilient communication. It will be carried out within the context of interdepartmental physician handoffs between Emergency Departments (ED) and Medical Intensive Care Units (MICU). Multi-faceted research methods will be used, including (a) clinician shadowing and audio-recording of ED-MICU handoffs, (b) a post-handoff interaction questionnaire with participating ED and MICU physicians, (c) handoff tool collection, and (d) handoff evaluation huddles to perform a situated in-depth evaluation of handoff tools within the context of patient handoffs. This research will contribute towards developing an integrated perspective on the development of structured physician handoffs tools and communication in three ways. First, it will strengthen our empirical insights of the collaborative processes that underlie handoff activities. This will involve a comprehensive understanding of the nuances of interactive communication and the role of social interactions and communication resilience for supporting effective handoffs. Second, it will inform the design of handoff tools. This will involve the identification of information organization aspects for handoff tools that will facilitate effective interactive and error-free communication. Third, it will integrate theoretical and methodological implications of this work into graduate courses on patient safety and communication to expose and also attract students in a health informatics program to research careers in information sciences and computing. Additionally, handoff scenarios from this study will be incorporated into hands-on training exercises for medical students to support the development of their skills for effective social interaction and resilient communication.