“The transfer of information between nurses from emergency departments (EDs) and critical care units is essential to achieve a continuity of effective, individualized and safe patient care. The aim of this study was to explore the process of patient handover between ED and intensive care unit (ICU) nurses when transferring a patient from ED to the ICU. Qualitative analysis of the data revealed that there was no structured and consistent approach to how handovers actually occurred. Nurses from both ED and ICU lacked clarity as to when the actual handover process began. Nurses from both settings recognized the importance of the information given and received during handover and deemed it to have an important role in influencing quality and continuity of care. Nurses from both departments would benefit from a structured framework or aide memoir to guide the handover process. Collaborative work between the nursing teams in both departments would further enhance understanding of each others’ roles and expectations.”

McFetridge, B., Gillespie, M., Goode, D., & Melby, V. (n.d.). An exploration of the handover process of critically ill patients between nursing staff from the emergency department and the intensive care unit. Nursing in Critical Care.,12(6), 261-269.
Full text for Emory Users