ABSTRACT
@#practice and care environments are important aspects ofnursing care. The use of a reliable and valid scale canmonitor the quality of handover and provide information forcontinuous improvement of practice. This study aims todescribe the perception of nurses, on the domains of qualityof information, efficiency, interaction and support andpatient involvement. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conductedamong 450 nurses from 37 wards in Hospital Kuala Lumpur.Nurses on shift duty were recruited by conveniencesampling from the Medical, Surgery, Obstetrics &Gynaecology, Orthopaedic and Paediatric wards. Using avalidated questionnaire (Handover Evaluation Scale), nursesself-rated their perceptions using a 7-point scale andprovided open-ended responses to the strengths andchallenges that they faced. Descriptive and inferentialanalyses were done while open-ended questions weresummarised based on key themes. Results: A total of 414 nurses completed the survey (92.0%response rate). Nurses had an overall mean (SD) perceptionscore of 5.01 (SD 0.56). They perceived good interaction andsupport during handover and on the quality of informationthat they received, with mean scores of 5.54 (SD 0.79) and5.19 (SD 0.69), respectively. There was an associationbetween the departments where the nurses worked and theiroverall perceptions on nursing handover (p<0.001).Interruptions being the most common theme emerged fromthe open-ended section.Conclusion: Despite having substantial interaction andsupport amongst nurses, opportunities for improvementswere noted. Improvements in the quality of handoverinformation and reducing interruptions should be the mainemphases as these were perceived to be essential in thecurrent handover practices by nurses.