Emergency physicians’ workstation design: An observational study of interruptions and perception of collaboration during shift-end handoffs (22 March 2021)

Summary

Frequent external interruptions and lack of collaboration among team members are known to be common barriers in end-of-shift handoffs between physicians in the emergency department. In spite of being the primary location for this crucial and cognitively demanding task, workstations are not designed to limit barriers and support handoffs.

The purpose of this study from Joshi et al. was to examine handoff characteristics, actual and perceived interruptions, and perceived collaboration among emergency physicians performing end-of-shift handoffs in physician workstations with varying levels of enclosures—(a) open-plan workstation, (b) enclosed workstation, and (c) semi-open workstation.

The study showed positive outcomes experienced by physician working in the enclosed workstation as compared to the open and semi-open workstations.