Professional communication with other members of the health care team is an important component of every nurse’s job. See Figure 2.8^[1] for an image illustrating communication between health care team members. Common types of professional interactions include reports to health care team members, handoff reports, and transfer reports.

Reports to Health Care Team Members

Nurses routinely report information to other health care team members, as well as urgently contact health care providers to report changes in patient status.

Standardized methods of communication have been developed to ensure that information is exchanged between health care team members in a structured, concise, and accurate manner to ensure safe patient care. One common format used by health care team members to exchange patient information is ISBARR, a mnemonic for the components of Introduction, Situation, Background, Assessment, Request/Recommendations, and Repeat back.

• • Introduction: Introduce your name, role, and the agency from which you are calling.
  • Situation: Provide the patient’s name and location, why you are calling, recent vital signs, and the status of the patient.
  • Background: Provide pertinent background information about the patient such as admitting medical diagnoses, code status, recent relevant lab or diagnostic results, and allergies.
  • Assessment: Share abnormal assessment findings and your evaluation of the current patient situation.
  • Request/Recommendations: State what you would like the provider to do, such as reassess the patient, order a lab/diagnostic test, prescribe/change medication, etc.
  • Repeat back: If you are receiving new orders from a provider, repeat them to confirm accuracy. Be sure to document communication with the provider in the patient’s chart.

Read an example of an ISBARR report in the following box. A hyperlink is provided to a printable ISBARR reference card.

Handoff Reports

Handoff reports are defined by The Joint Commission as “a transfer and acceptance of patient care responsibility achieved through effective communication. It is a real-time process of passing patient specific information from one caregiver to another, or from one team of caregivers to another, for the purpose of ensuring the continuity and safety of the patient’s care.”^[2] In 2017, The Joint Commission issued a sentinel alert about inadequate handoff communication that has resulted in patient harm such as wrong-site surgeries, delays in treatment, falls, and medication errors. Strategies for improving handoff communication have been implemented at agencies across the country.

Although many types of nursing shift-to-shift handoff reports have been used over the years, evidence strongly supports that bedside handoff reports increase patient safety, as well as patient and nurse satisfaction, by effectively communicating current, accurate patient information in real time.^[3] See Figure 2.9^[4] for an image illustrating two nurses participating in a handoff report. Bedside reports typically occur in hospitals and include the patient, along with the off-going and the oncoming nurses in a face-to-face handoff report conducted at the patient’s bedside. HIPAA rules must be kept in mind if visitors are present or the room is not a private room. Family members may be included with the patient’s permission. See a sample checklist for a bedside handoff report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in Figure 2.10.^[5] Although a bedside handoff report is similar to an ISBARR report, it contains additional information to ensure continuity of care across nursing shifts. For example, the “assessment” portion of the bedside handoff report includes detailed pertinent data the oncoming nurse needs to know, such as current head-to-toe assessment findings to establish a baseline; information about equipment such as IVs, catheters, and drainage tubes; and recent changes in medications, lab results, diagnostic tests, and treatments.

Transfer Reports

Transfer reports are provided by nurses when transferring a patient to another unit or to another agency. Transfer reports contain similar information as bedside handoff reports, but are even more detailed when the patient is being transferred to another agency. Checklists are often provided by agencies to ensure accurate, complete information is shared.