Barriers (actual or potential) to the transfer of accurate patient information

Transitional care involves many barriers that must be addressed to ensure smooth transition. Some of the common encountered barriers include poor integration of care services, ineffective communication, and poor reporting and during patient hand off. These barriers present imminent limitations to attainment of patient safety and effective transition. A study conducted by King et al., (2013) indicated that poor communication leads to omission of advance directives and patient’s preferences in transitional care. From the case study analyzed herein related to Mrs. Snyder, it’s evident that she will transition to a hospice facility considering her health condition. This aspect calls for adoption of a standardized communication and reporting tool among all care takers to facilitate continuity of care.

 From Scott et al., (2017) perspective, transitional costs have been a major hindrance to effective transition. This aspect incorporates insurance reimbursements parameters outside an inpatient facility. This implies that it will be imperative to plan early for discharge to avert cases of negative eventualities that could negate with transitional care. It’s also imperative to seek support for Mrs. Snyder through discussing with her and her family attributes related to transitional care. Including family members in the process is critical to eliminate potential barriers that may hinder effective transition. 

Strategy for ensuring that the destination care provider has an accurate understanding

One of the fundamental success factors in ensuring continuity of care is linking information between current and destination care providers. The application of Continuity Assessment Records and Evaluation (CARE) framework has played a key role at our health facility in delivering optimal communication. This framework delivers optimal communication for successful transition. According to Kripalani et al., (2019), the application of CARE framework enables care takers in the transition to acquire updated information that enables creation of effective care.

Another imperative undertaking would be to employ the Electronic Health Record (EHR) system to ensure safe transfer of patients and quality of care to the patients. This proposition is avouched by Gordon and Catalini (2018) in assessment of current technology during care transitioning. The author notes that use of an up-to-date heath record system creates a strong evidence-base for continuity of care. Of importance is the scope of this undertaking in increasing patient’s safety. Vest et al., (2019) recommend the application of health information technology to avert adverse effects during transition and ensure patient’s safety. This process enables for creation of medical records that can be referred to by care takers during transition process and after hand over. 

Conclusion

Coordination of care for Mrs. Snyder is critical in facilitating her effective transition. It’s evident from the scenario provided that coordination of care across care settings requires effective assessment, analysis and oversight to increase overall transition outcomes. One of the vital elements that arise from this analysis is the importance of effective communication. The delivery of patient’s information across care process reduces instances of adverse effects and reduces patient’s safety. Success in transitional care has been cited to incorporate six elements that must be adhered by care takers. The understanding of transition modalities by care takers leads to successful delivery of transitional care. An evidence-based transition leads to overall increase in patient’s safety and contributes to attainment of patient’s needs. 

References

Gordon, W. J., & Catalini, C. (2018). Blockchain technology for healthcare: facilitating the transition to patient-driven interoperability. Computational and structural biotechnology journal, 16, 224-230.

Ingber, M. J., Feng, Z., Khatutsky, G., Wang, J. M., Bercaw, L. E., Zheng, N. T., ... & Segelman, M. (2017). Initiative to reduce avoidable hospitalizations among nursing facility residents shows promising results. Health Affairs, 36(3), 441-450.