EP244 - Improving communication and accessibility to surgical doctors with introduction of a baton bleep system

Abstract Aims Communication between allied health professionals and doctors is vital to patient care. When not effective and delayed, patient safety is at risk due to failure of critical information being shared resulting in medical errors. Within general surgery at our trust there are three surgical teams, with 25 doctors holding individual bleeps. Due to shift patterns, contacting the correct doctor for the correct team has resulted in concerns of poor accessibility. A team baton bleep system was therefore introduced to improve communication. Methods A baton bleep was introduced to each of the three surgical teams, with a doctor from each team being allocated each day. Information was sent to allied health professionals and doctors to make them aware of the new bleep, with posters places on all surgical wards. A qualitative survey was created for allied health professionals and one for doctors to assess perceived effectiveness of the new system. Results 16 members of the surgical team were surveyed, over half found the bleep system helpful with 69% agreeing that it improved communication and collaboration within the team. 12 allied health professionals were also surveyed, 67% were satisfied with the new system. The main suggestion for improvement overall was to clearly document in the ward notes the consultant and team responsible for each patient. Conclusions A baton bleep system appears to be helping enhance communication and streamline workflow within the department through improving accessibility of surgical teams which is crucial for effective patient care and timely responses to critical situations.