Using Technology-Supported Transfer of Care Systems: Informing Good Practice Recommendations

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Transfer of care systems facilitate medication information exchange between hospitals and community pharmacies.
• Systems like PharmOutcomes, Refer-to-Pharmacy (RTP), and Help for Harry aim to enhance patient safety during hospital discharge.
• There is limited literature comparing these specific UK-based transfer of care technologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe, compare, and contrast key UK transfer of care systems.
• To identify areas for good practice recommendations in the development and implementation of these systems.

Main Methods:

• A rapid literature review was conducted, synthesizing 26 sources.
• Semi-structured interviews were performed with four key informants involved in system development or implementation.
• Qualitative data analysis involved both deductive and inductive approaches.

Main Results:

• All compared systems share the objective of reducing discharge-related risks.
• Identified differences include automated referral feedback, marketing approaches, and practitioner accountability.
• Key themes explored were system implementation, attributes, and stakeholder engagement.

Conclusions:

• Despite shared goals, UK transfer of care systems exhibit variations in functionality and implementation strategies.
• The findings can inform the development of evidence-based recommendations for optimizing these patient safety technologies.