Summary
The article by Burgess et al. discusses the ISBAR (introduction, situation, background, assessment, recommendation) framework, which is a standardized handover communication strategy. As a clinical communication strategy that had been endorsed by the World Health Organization, ISBAR has been applied widely within the Australian health system. ISBAR enables healthcare professionals to highlight the stakeholders in the patient’s care continuum while maintaining patient-centeredness in care planning (Burgess et al., 2020). ISBAR is associated with better patient outcomes from the elicitation of priorities and is a key determinant of patient health outcomes, such as incomplete tasks in previous interventions, undetermined patient instability, or under-confidence in the junior staff.
As a tool for promoting clinical communication, ISBAR brings together the multi-disciplinary team involved in the care continuum by bridging the power difference among staff. Leveling the ground for clinical communication serves the best interest of the patient and also those of the healthcare team since there is more synergy and comprehensiveness in actions taken after handover. The ISBAR framework promotes clinical governance, such as effective monitoring of care plans during handover and documentation by linking with the electronic healthcare system (Burgess et al., 2020). Therefore, ISBAR improves overall clinical vigilance by documenting all relevant health-related information when transferring accountability for a patient’s healthcare needs.
The ISBAR framework forms a core part of the clinical skills among healthcare professionals. As a tool that can be used by all clinical workers, including allied healthcare workers, ISBAR promotes the integration of the clinical setting such that there is improved safety for patients and excellence in healthcare services during handover procedures. The ISBAR framework is, therefore a channel for improving the quality of healthcare during communication of patient assessment during handovers. ISBAR reduces omissions, irregularities, redundancies, and irrelevant inclusions in clinical handover communication (Burgess et al., 2020). Consequently, action elicited for further assessment becomes effective due to the transparency and accuracy of professional communication during handovers.
Reflection
ISBR can be applied in the communication of assessment findings in a healthcare setting by reducing the power differences that hinder the spread of patient information from one medical personnel to another. Typically, there exist power differences among health professionals due to varying levels of education and specialization. For instance, a nurse might feel inferior when working with a surgeon. Additionally, a surgeon who has a master’s degree might think a doctorate surgeon is superior to them. These disparities create power differences, which affect the transfer of patient information from one person to another (Burgess et al., 2020).
By using ISBR, these gaps are sealed as the framework offers a standard approach to informbackgroundsation dissemination during clinical changeover. Generally, ISBR promotes seamless transfer of patient data between parties of different education and professional background in the health care setting.
ISBR can also be used in the dissemination of assessment findings through various forms of communication. While it appears that ISBR is suited for verbal communication, especially in instances such as inter-hospital transfers, reports and briefings, and shift change interactions, the approach can be used in written forms. For example, ISBR can be integrated in the communication of written memos, radiological findings, referral documents, and request forms constituting patient results (Burgess et al., 2020). Generally, it can be applied in communicating written assessment findings between nurses, doctors, and physicians as opposed to the typical verbal form of data reporting.
Reference
Burgess, A., van Diggele, C., Roberts, C., & Mellis, C. (2020). Teaching clinical handover with ISBAR. BMC Medical Education, 20(2), 1-8.