Improving and evaluating nurse handover process by using patient safety communication tool

Purpose: The aim of this study to improve and evaluate the nurse handover process by using handover form which is used in patient safety and proposed according to SBAR technique. Method: An action research study was employed. The sample consisted of 55 registered nurses working in three surgical and three internal wards of a university hospital located in İzmir. The data was collected in between October 2018- September 2019. Descriptive statistics (frequency/percentage, arithmetic mean) were used in data evoluation. Results: Situation (S) part of SBAR handover form has been filled with a ratio of 98,93%, Background (B) part; 96,17%, Assessment (A) part; 75,88% and Recommendation (R) part; 91,56%. Nurses participating in this study stated that the use of the SBAR communication tool lost time on handover with the percentage of 86,48%. This ratio in the experimented clinic was 53,84%. 86,48% of sample reported that using the SBAR communication tool did not contribute positively to nurse handovers, in the experimented clinic 53,84% of sample thought this. 59,45% nurses and 84,61% experimented clinic nurses reported that there were no adverse events when using the SBAR communication tool. Conclusion: The majority of the nurses stated that they did not want to continue using the form. According to the results, it may be suggested to plan regular trainings to manager and clinical nurses on communication process and patient safety, to increase the safety culture and to provide the use of professional communication techniques. Key words: Patient Safety, Nursing Handover, Communication Errors, SBAR Communication Tool