Literature Review
Handover communication or shift reporting is an essential process that determines the quality of care patients receive. It is a process that is highly dependent on the quality of information nurses exchange with each other, which in turn determines the quality of decisions made to ensure that there is continuity of care from one shift to another. There are different shift reporting approaches that healthcare facilities use. However, each approach has its own merits and demerits. Currently, the target healthcare facility is using a traditional shift reporting approach where the transaction of information is done away from the bedside.
While the traditional approach has been cited to save time during shift reporting, several challenges have emerged as a concern to patient quality, including the accuracy of the information documented and the inclusion of the patient in the care process. For this reason, a quality improvement initiative will be formulated to improve the handover communication process.
The change initiative will involve implementing a bedside shift reporting system guided by the following PICOT question; In an acute care setting (P) how does bedside shift reporting (I) compared to traditional shift reporting (C) affect patient satisfaction (O) within three months after intervention implementation (T)? The purpose of this paper will be to provide a literature review of evidence focusing on the PICOT question.
Summary of the Purpose of the Studies
From the identified literature, the authors had different intentions with their studies, which were relevant to the PICOT. For example, a study by Jimmerson et al. (2021) wanted to identify the handover communication experiences of acute care clinical nurses and nursing supervisors regarding appropriate content for bedside shift reporting (BSR) and barriers and facilitators related to the implementation of BSR. This was similar to McCloskey et al. (2019) whose study included patients and family members other than nurses. Studies with similar goals included a study by Grimshaw et al. (2020), Wiklund et al. (2020), and Oxelmark et al. (2020).
A study by Forde et al. (2020) had a different purpose which was to describe the structures, processes, and content of bedside handover at the change of nursing shift in an acute-care context. Another study with a different purpose was the study by Sun et al. (2020) which aimed to describe the relationship between inpatient falls, which is a quality aspect, and BSR. A study done by Clari et al. (2021) wanted to identify, evaluate, and synthesize the qualitative literature on the barriers to and facilitators of BSR which was almost similar to Jimmerson et al. (2021) that also focused on barriers and facilitators to BSR as experienced by nurses and patients.
Comparison of Sample Populations
The studies had different sample populations, with most focusing the sample collection on acute care settings, which is similar to the PICOT question. For example, Jimmerson et al. (2021) study had a sample comprising 22 clinical nurses and nursing supervisors in an acute care setting. The study by Oxelmark et al. (2020) focused on 218 adult medical patients and 101 registered nurses also in an acute care setting. The study by Grimshaw et al. (2020) had a sample comprising seven medical, surgical, and intensive care unit nurses in a community hospital.
Wiklund et al. (2020) study was based on a child delivery unit focusing on 19 couples. In the study by Forde et al. (2020), the researchers’ sample comprised 30 episodes of bedside handover, while Sun et al. (2020) sample comprised 9,693 observations recorded from 11 units at four different hospitals over 281 shifts. Two studies were systematic reviews; the study by McCloskey et al. (2019), whose sample was collected from 12 qualitative publications, and the study by Clari et al. (2021), which had twenty-four articles included in the review.
A Synthesis of the Studies’ Conclusions
From the findings, different themes emerged concerning the use of BSR. The first theme is effectiveness, where a majority of the studies identified it as a suitable method for improving patient outcomes. One such study is the study by Clari et al. (2021), where the authors noted that BSR enhances patient safety and increases satisfaction and recognition among patients and nurses, with Sun et al. (2020) reporting a positive correlation between
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