Simulated Interprofessional Handoff: Determining Students’ Self-efficacy for Collaborative Practice

Interprofessional communication is a requirement of patient care and there is need to standardize interprofessional handoff approaches as communication breakdown can result in medical errors (Choi & Chang, 2021). The purpose of this poster is to present findings from a simulated interprofessional handoff project developed to prepare collaborative ready health care professionals to perform accurate and appropriate handoffs when caring for patients. This project aimed to determine if simulated handoff education (nursing and occupational therapy) improves perceptions of communication. Both RN/OT students (n=72) completed a 4-hour simulated interprofessional handoff experience that included a handoff education module in Spring 2024. Following each simulation, students provided interprofessional handoff (RN to OT and OT to RN) which was be audio recorded and assessed for handoff quality (CEX Tool; Horwitz et al., 2013) and handoff accuracy (SBAR checklist). Differences among RN/OT students’ self-efficacy of collaborative practice behaviors (CPBs) using the IPEC-SET 27, an instrument that has demonstrated validity and reliability in previous education projects, were assessed (Kottorp et al., 2018). Interprofessional handoff accuracy improved from pre to post and changes in CPBs were noted in each interprofessional domain after participation in two Sim-IPE experiences. The preparation of graduating nurses and occupational therapists with higher-quality interprofessional (IP) handoff skills, required in clinical practice, has the potential to reduce communication errors during handoff and can be achieved with Sim-IPE. This innovation can serve as a tool for interprofessional educators to integrate into their academic curricula, potentially improving interprofessional communication competency as students transition into clinical practice