How does using the ISBAR tool provide clear communication between health care professionals and improve patient outcomes?

There are many reasons why effective and organized communication is important postoperatively; namely to maintain patient safety and provide continuity of care. The use of ISBAR organizes and offers information in a way that can be understood interprofessionally through succinct presentation and clearly prioritized report giving. 138,000, which is approximately one in every 18 patients, admitted to a Canadian hospital in 2014 and 2015 experienced at least one adverse event (Chan, 2016). It was also found that 19.8% of the patients admitted into surgical wards experienced adverse events with 37% of the total adverse events occurring due to healthcare provider error and miscommunication (Chan, 2016). By using ISBARR, communication can be streamlined which would decrease continuity of care complications, improve patient outcomes and decrease time spent by patients in the hospital which is more cost efficient. After reviewing literature we have found that implementing ISBAR increases patient safety which can shorten recovery time, increase patient centered care, and prevent adverse events related to communication errors or misunderstandings. In conclusion, the studies we researched showed that the ISBARR model is considered as an excellent tool for effective communication which will improve patient care and safety if used. For this model to be considered successful, there needs to be mutual respect and the ability to work on open communication. It requires all healthcare workers to accept change in their communication styles if necessary and consistency is also considered key. If everyone is on the same page, it decreases the risk of miscommunications which could potentially lead to patient harm. Passing off key information in report is extremely important and new nurses or new grads could potentially struggle and might feel as though they are not providing an efficient amount of detail. The SBAR model provides an outline and helps the healthcare provider gather their thoughts and enables them to include all salient information. Overall, after looking at the research available, we were able to answer our PICOT question which was as follows: how does using the ISBAR tool provide clear communication, between health care professionals, and improve patient outcomes? The ISBAR tool provides structure and allows information to be presented in a way that can be understood interprofessionally, allowing effective communication and decreased misunderstandings. As a result, it increases patient safety which includes a shorter recovery period, increased patient centered care, and most importantly prevention of adverse events related to communication errors.Not peer reviewedStudent Research Day Poster (2018