An evaluation of handover for the core trainees in psychiatry in the North Western Deanery

Handover is essential to ensure high quality care. It is also a dynamic educational opportunity for trainee doctors. In the UK, the General Medical Council's annual training survey has repeatedly highlighted handover as a major concern in the training of doctors in psychiatry. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the handover experiences for Core Trainees (years one to three) in psychiatry in the North Western Deanery (England).

An online questionnaire focusing on current practice, safety and the educational aspects of handover was sent to all Core Trainees (years one to three) in psychiatry from the North Western Deanery in April 2013. The questionnaire had quantitative and qualitative elements and was analysed descriptively, with free text collated into themes by the authors.

The survey was completed by 77.7 per cent of trainees, and indicated a wide variety in the structure of the handover process. There were no specific safety incidents but concerns regarding the handover of medical problems and handover from peripheral hospital sites. Trainees felt that handover was an important opportunity to learn, but in practice it had limited educational value. It is important to consider the robustness of handover in the context of the types of problems handed over, multiple sites and a lack of senior involvement. There also needs consideration as to how a high quality handover can be of educational value.

This is the first report that evaluates clinical handover between Psychiatry trainee doctors in the UK which evaluates both a clinical and educational perspective.