Surgical intraoperative handoff initiative: standardizing operating room communication using SHRIMPS.
Standardized handoffs during perioperative care can improve patient safety. This article describes the development and implementation of an operating room handoff report called SHRIMPS, which highlights critical handoff elements for surgical technicians (eg, S stands for surgeon aware and sharps/sponges and other countable items). Researchers piloted the use of this handoff report in 15 surgical cases and found that it improved communication regarding nearly all critical elements.