Research

• Ineffective communication errors are the most frequently reported cause of sentinel events in U.S. hospitals.
•  Providers from multiple professions with differing responsibilities increase the risk of communication-associated errors.
• Literature suggests that lack of knowledge and differing attitudes among clinicians present a significant barrier to safe, effective communication.
•  Standardized communication tools such as Situation-Background-Assessment-Plan-SBAR, may improve patient outcomes by providing a framework to convey critical information.
• We designed and developed a pilot exercise for small groups of inter-professional learners to practice the SBAR communication strategy using high-fidelity human patient simulation
• To obtain learner feedback a survey focusing on learner reactions and perceptions to the exercise was completed.

Related People: Clinton Chichester and Amanda DeAngelis-Chichester
(1) Providence College
(2) College of Pharmacy, University of Rhode Island