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Patient handover in a European border region: Cross-sectional survey study among healthcare workers to explore the status quo, potential risks, and solutions

Patient handover in a European border region: Cross-sectional survey study among healthcare... IntroductionWhile the popularity of international care is rising, the complexity of international care compromises patient safety. To identify risks and propose solutions to improve international care, this study explores experiences of healthcare workers with international handovers in a European border region.MethodsA cross-sectional survey design was used to reach out to 3000 healthcare workers, working for hospitals or emergency services in three neighboring countries in the Meuse-Rhine Euregion. In total, 846 healthcare workers completed the survey with 35 closed- and open-ended questions about experiences with international patient handover.ResultsOne-third of respondents had been involved in international handover in the previous month. The handovers occurred in planned and acute care settings and were supported by numerous, yet varying standardized procedures. Healthcare workers were trained for this in some, but not all settings. Respondents mentioned 408 risks and proposed 373 solutions, which were inductively analyzed. Six identified themes classify the level on which risks and accompanying solutions can be found: awareness, professional competencies, communication between professionals, loss of information, facilities and support, and organizational structure.DiscussionThis study gives insight in international patient handovers in a European border region. Among the biggest risks experienced are procedural differences, sharing patient information, unfamiliarity with foreign healthcare systems, and not knowing roles and responsibilities of peers working across the border. Standardization of procedures, harmonization of systems, and the possibility for healthcare workers to get to know each other will contribute to reach common ground and move towards optimized and patient-safer cross-border care. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png International Journal of Care Coordination SAGE

Patient handover in a European border region: Cross-sectional survey study among healthcare workers to explore the status quo, potential risks, and solutions

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References (22)

Publisher
SAGE
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2021
ISSN
2053-4345
eISSN
2053-4353
DOI
10.1177/20534345211009434
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

IntroductionWhile the popularity of international care is rising, the complexity of international care compromises patient safety. To identify risks and propose solutions to improve international care, this study explores experiences of healthcare workers with international handovers in a European border region.MethodsA cross-sectional survey design was used to reach out to 3000 healthcare workers, working for hospitals or emergency services in three neighboring countries in the Meuse-Rhine Euregion. In total, 846 healthcare workers completed the survey with 35 closed- and open-ended questions about experiences with international patient handover.ResultsOne-third of respondents had been involved in international handover in the previous month. The handovers occurred in planned and acute care settings and were supported by numerous, yet varying standardized procedures. Healthcare workers were trained for this in some, but not all settings. Respondents mentioned 408 risks and proposed 373 solutions, which were inductively analyzed. Six identified themes classify the level on which risks and accompanying solutions can be found: awareness, professional competencies, communication between professionals, loss of information, facilities and support, and organizational structure.DiscussionThis study gives insight in international patient handovers in a European border region. Among the biggest risks experienced are procedural differences, sharing patient information, unfamiliarity with foreign healthcare systems, and not knowing roles and responsibilities of peers working across the border. Standardization of procedures, harmonization of systems, and the possibility for healthcare workers to get to know each other will contribute to reach common ground and move towards optimized and patient-safer cross-border care.

Journal

International Journal of Care CoordinationSAGE

Published: Jun 1, 2021

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