Anesthesia Needs to Lead the Way in Safety—Again—through the Universal Adoption of Structured Handoffs

Editorial| March 2024 Anesthesia Needs to Lead the Way in Safety—Again—through the Universal Adoption of Structured Handoffs This article has an Audio Podcast Jeffrey B. Cooper, Ph.D.; Jeffrey B. Cooper, Ph.D. 1Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts. Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Meghan B. Lane-Fall, M.D., M.S.H.P. Meghan B. Lane-Fall, M.D., M.S.H.P. 2Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Author and Article Information This editorial accompanies the article on p. 387. Accepted for publication November 28, 2023. Address correspondence to Dr. Cooper: Anesthesiology March 2024, Vol. 140, 355–357. https://doi.org/10.1097/ALN.0000000000004868 Connected Content Article: A Quality Improvement Initiative to Reduce Adverse Effects of Transitions of Anesthesia Care on Postoperative Outcomes: A Retrospective Cohort Study Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Cite Icon Cite Get Permissions Search Site Citation Jeffrey B. Cooper, Meghan B. Lane-Fall; Anesthesia Needs to Lead the Way in Safety—Again—through the Universal Adoption of Structured Handoffs. Anesthesiology 2024; 140:355–357 doi: https://doi.org/10.1097/ALN.0000000000004868 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll PublicationsAnesthesiology Search Advanced Search Topics: adoption, safety, transition of care The first published discussions of anesthesia handoffs began several decades ago.1–3 That work highlighted both the risks and potential benefits of handoffs, using observational approaches to develop a portrait of some of the critical aspects of exchanging anesthesia personnel. More than 40 yr later, many more studies have examined the link between anesthesia handoffs and adverse patient outcomes.4 Only a few have studied interventions to address whether standardizing handoffs can improve patient outcomes as Saha and Segal describe in this issue of Anesthesiology.5 The report by Saha and Segal should be a call-to-action for all anesthesia professionals to conduct a deliberate, structured process for every instance in which responsibility for care of a patient is permanently transferred from one clinician or team to another. The evidence supporting the relationship between unstructured anesthesia handoffs and harm is compelling but mixed. Most relevant studies demonstrate a robust association... You do not currently have access to this content.