Communication in acute to primary transitions of care

About the project

The aim of this project, “Driving health care efficiencies and patient care outcomes by improving communication in acute to primary transitions of care,” led by Philip Della at Curtin University, was to improve Australian patient safety outcomes by analysing and then enhancing communication practices during transition of care at discharge for high-risk clinical populations.

To achieve this we identified clinical and communication risk factors for patient readmission and analysed the actual discourse in hospitals through which patient safety during discharge was effectively managed, mishandled or neglected. Audit, interview and survey components clarified the barriers to, and risks in, communication during discharge.

We then developed policy recommendations for communication practices during discharge, communication resources for healthcare professionals and training resources to support implementation.

This was a three-year Australian Research Council Linkage grant with funding from the ARC and the Linkage partners.