Theme 2: Effective Interprofessional Communication

1. Burns, J., Ciccarelli, S., Mardakhaev, E., Erdfarb, A., Goldberg-Stein, S., & Bello, J. A. (2021). Handoffs in radiology: Minimizing communication errors and improving care transitions. Journal of the American College of Radiology, 18(9), 1297–1309. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacr.2021.04.007

• This article provides insights into communication failures during radiology handoffs and outlines strategies to enhance care transitions, such as standardized templates, SBAR communication, and electronic health records. Nurses can use these strategies to improve communication during patient handoffs, reducing diagnostic errors. In practice, nurses can implement these tools during shift changes or when collaborating with radiology to ensure clarity and patient safety. 

2. Chard, R., & Makary, M. A. (2015). Transfer‐of‐Care communication: Nursing best practices. AORN Journal, 102(4), 329–342. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aorn.2015.07.009

• This article highlights nursing best practices for transfer-of-care communication, focusing on structured formats like SBAR, face-to-face communication, and situational awareness. It helps nurses improve communication during patient transfers, reducing the risk of errors and enhancing patient safety. Nurses can apply these practices in any care transition, ensuring complete and clear information exchange. 

3. Parker, A. L., Forsythe, L. L., & Kohlmorgen, I. K. (2019). Teamstepps®: An evidence‐based approach to reduce clinical errors threatening safety in outpatient settings: An integrative review. Journal of Healthcare Risk Management, 38(4), 19–31. https://doi.org/10.1002/jhrm.21352

• This article explores TeamSTEPPS®, a teamwork framework designed to enhance communication and reduce clinical errors in outpatient settings. It helps nurses improve safety and communication by adopting structured teamwork tools such as briefs, huddles, and debriefs. Nurses can implement this system by engaging in TeamSTEPPS training and incorporating these tools to strengthen team coordination and patient safety.