PACU handoff Checklists
The ASA defines the standard for OR- to-PACU handoff:"Upon arrival in the PACU, the patient shall be re-evaluated and a verbalreport to the responsible PACU nurse byan anesthesia provider”. Currently there is not standard format about what andhow to report. The quality and quantityof information exchanged can still bevariable. There is no widely accepted guidelines exist for PACU handoff.
A group of anesthesiology residents in Medstar Georgetown UniversityHospital, Washington, DC developed PACUhandoff checklists. They also conducteda study to verify the effectiveness of the checklists. The results werepublished in June issue of Anesthesia Patients Safety FoundationNewsletter. Residents who used achecklist (Group B) handoff 8 items onthe checklists with a significantly higher frequency compared to residents who did not use a checklist (Group A). Handoffs with the use the checklist (Group B)spent less time discussing each itemthan handoffs that did not use checklist(Group A).
With the use of a checklist, the percentage of information exchanged during PACU handoff increased significantly. The checklist clearly increased the amount of information exchanged during our handoffs. The study is the firststudy to target handoffs byresidents. The standardized handoffchecklist may help reduce morbidity and mortality.
