Document Detail


Interns overestimate the effectiveness of their hand-off communication.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  20142285     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
OBJECTIVE: Theories from the psychology of communication may be applicable in understanding why hand-off communication is inherently problematic. The purpose of this study was to assess whether postcall pediatric interns can correctly estimate the patient care information and rationale received by on-call interns during hand-off communication. METHODS: Pediatric interns at the University of Chicago were interviewed about the hand-off. Postcall interns were asked to predict what on-call interns would report as the important pieces of information communicated during the hand-off about each patient, with accompanying rationale. Postcall interns also guessed on-call interns' rating of how well the hand-offs went. Then, on-call interns were asked to list the most important pieces of information for each patient that postcall interns communicated during the hand-off, with accompanying rationale. On-call interns also rated how well the hand-offs went. Interns had access to written hand-offs during the interviews. RESULTS: We conducted 52 interviews, which constituted 59% of eligible interviews. Seventy-two patients were discussed. The most important piece of information about a patient was not successfully communicated 60% of the time, despite the postcall intern's believing that it was communicated. Postcall and on-call interns did not agree on the rationales provided for 60% of items. In addition, an item was more likely to be effectively communicated when it was a to-do item (65%) or an item related to anticipatory guidance (69%) compared with a knowledge item (38%). Despite the lack of agreement on content and rationale of information communicated during hand-offs, peer ratings of hand-off quality were high. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric interns overestimated the effectiveness of their hand-off communication. Theories from communication psychology suggest that miscommunication is caused by egocentric thought processes and a tendency for the speaker to overestimate the receiver's understanding. This study demonstrates that systematic causes of miscommunication may play a role in hand-off quality.
Authors:
Vivian Y Chang; Vineet M Arora; Shiri Lev-Ari; Michael D'Arcy; Boaz Keysar
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article     Date:  2010-02-08
Journal Detail:
Title:  Pediatrics     Volume:  125     ISSN:  1098-4275     ISO Abbreviation:  Pediatrics     Publication Date:  2010 Mar 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2010-03-02     Completed Date:  2010-04-05     Revised Date:  -    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  0376422     Medline TA:  Pediatrics     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  491-6     Citation Subset:  AIM; IM    
Affiliation:
5841 S Maryland Ave, MC 2007, AMB B217, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Communication*
Internship and Residency*
Interprofessional Relations*
Pediatrics*

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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