Cocreating the ICU-PAUSE Tool for Intensive Care Unit-Ward Transitions.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Patient Safety
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Intensive care unit (ICU) to ward patient transfers are high-risk events.
• Clinician miscommunication during these transfers is linked to adverse events.
• Few educational tools exist to improve resident communication during ICU-ward transfers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To co-create a novel electronic health record tool for ICU-ward transfers.
• To improve resident handoff communication using human-centered design (HCD).

Main Methods:

• Human-centered design (HCD) workshops were conducted at three academic hospitals.
• Process mapping, brainstorming, and rapid prototyping were utilized.
• Thematic analysis of workshop audio recordings informed tool development.

Main Results:

• A novel electronic tool, ICU-PAUSE, was co-created with Internal Medicine residents.
• ICU-PAUSE incorporates key elements: ICU course, code status, uncertainty, pending tests, consultants, medications, summary, and exam.
• The tool aims to enhance clarity and reduce miscommunication in patient handoffs.

Conclusions:

• Human-centered design successfully facilitated the co-creation of the ICU-PAUSE tool.
• The developed tool is intended to be more user-friendly for residents.
• Future work includes usability testing, implementation, and clinical evaluation.