Introduction of an electronic weekend handover system at a London university teaching hospital

Handover has long been identified as a potential source for error that can have direct consequences for patient care. The current weekend handover system at University College Hospital, London, involved a verbal handover meeting with a variety of methods used to collate information. A new handover system was introduced that involved the pre-population of a spreadsheet before attending the handover meeting. Doctors involved in the handover process were canvassed for opinion before and after the introduction of the new system, and logistical data were collected. The new system reduced the amount of time spent preparing for, and delivering, handover, and was deemed to be safer and to improve adherence to the Royal College of Physicians' guidelines for handover, including specification of level of doctor to perform handover and prioritisation of handover.