Handover is an integral aspect of clinical work for all doctors. During on calls it involves the transfer of responsibility and accountability for some or all aspects of patient care, to another person on a temporary basis. It is potentially a highly perilous step, and when carried out improperly can cause errors compromising patient safety. In recent times, handover is more important than ever due to the increase in shift patterns of working. Further the General Medical Council (GMC) has clear exceptions that all doctors should ‘keep colleagues well informed when sharing the care of patients.’

At Hammersmith and Fulham Mental Health Unit there was no formal junior doctor handover in place between changes of shift. Handover of clinical information between regular teams and the long day on call doctor was adhoc, informal and disorganised.

In 2021, we identified this significant patient safety concern, and introduced a handover sheet with a populated table contained pertinent information: date of the request, the location of the patient, the demographic details of the patient, the clinical information regarding the patient, the requested job and whether the task was completed. Junior doctors were instructed to complete the table which was kept in a folder in the junior doctor room when handing over information to the on call doctor. If the request was urgent and a face to face handover was not possible, doctors were encouraged to telephone the on call doctor to provide an additional verbal handover.

The GMC trainee survey identified that handover was a strong negative outlier with a trainee satisfaction rate of 44.79% in 2018. This was evident again in the GMC trainee survey 2019, where handover was again identified as negative outcome in comparison to the average with a trainee satisfaction score of 48.26%.

Having formalised the handover, the GMC trainee survey in 2021 identified a significant improvement in the trainee satisfaction rate of 59.03%; together with the results now being within the national average. Local trainee feedback survey also supported this finding with increased confidence being reported in the handover process.

Good handover does not happen by chance; this was clearly demonstrated following the implementation of a formal and structured proforma within the junior doctor handover at the Hammersmith and Fulham Mental Health Unit. This intervention not only improved the trainee confidence in the handover process but ultimately reduced the potential risk to patient safety.