Hand-off communication: a requisite for perioperative patient safety.

Transitions from one care provider to another put patients at increased risk of injuries and errors. A standardized approach to hand-off communication helps minimize these risks. One recognized approach to addressing this concern is the SBAR (ie, situation, background, assessment, recommendation) communication technique. Reference cards with the SBAR communication approach can be used by all staff members during hand offs in the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative phases of surgical patient care.