Automated handoff communication between shifts

Purpose

1.1 Automate and standardize shift handoff communication to reduce clinical errors in Intensive Care.
1.2 Automates documentation transfer, team notifications, and real-time alerts ensuring no data loss or miscommunication.
1.3 Automation provides a secure, traceable workflow where critical patient data, status updates, medications, and vital tasks are consistently shared between outgoing and incoming intensivists and care teams.
1.4 Automatedly enforces compliance with hospital protocols and auditing requirements by automating information handover.
1.5 Eliminates manual entry errors and time delays via real-time automating of structured handoff summaries.

Trigger Conditions

2.1 Scheduled timeslot for shift changes (e.g. 07:00, 19:00) automatically triggers workflow.
2.2 Manual button press by outgoing intensivist before leaving automates handoff process.
2.3 Entry/update in Electronic Health Record (EHR) system automatically triggers handoff communications.
2.4 Emergency handoff — triggered via mobile or desktop alert in automator interface.
2.5 Admission/discharge automates instant update to relevant teams.

Platform Variants

3.1 Microsoft Teams
- Feature/Setting: Automated message via Teams API; configure webhook to targeted channel for clinical handoff summary.
- Sample: Automate POST to /v3/conversations for summary dispatch.
3.2 Slack
- Feature/Setting: Automate use of Chat.postMessage API to send patient handover template to “ICU-handover” channel.
- Sample: Automate JSON payload to /api/chat.postMessage for real-time notifications.
3.3 Twilio SMS
- Feature/Setting: Automated SMS notifications to on-call intensivists via Messages API.
- Sample: Automate POST to /2010-04-01/Accounts/{AccountSid}/Messages.json.
3.4 SendGrid
- Feature/Setting: Automating shift report email blast with dynamic templates feature.
- Sample: Automate POST to /v3/mail/send with JSON template body.
3.5 Google Workspace (Gmail/Calendar)
- Feature/Setting: Automate scheduled email via Gmail API, automate calendar event creation for shift handoff times.
- Sample: Automate POST to /gmail/v1/users/me/messages/send and /calendar/v3/calendars/calendarId/events.
3.6 Epic Systems (EHR)
- Feature/Setting: Automate handoff summary retrieval via FHIR API, automate update trigger on care team view.
- Sample: Automate GET/POST to /Patient/{id}/CommunicationRequest.
3.7 Cerner (EHR)
- Feature/Setting: Automates clinical note sharing; configure Alert API for shift status change notification.
- Sample: Automate POST to /api/notifications for team updates.
3.8 PagerDuty
- Feature/Setting: Automatedly trigger new incident or notification on shift change.
- Sample: Automate POST to /incidents for alerting incoming intensivists.
3.9 Asana
- Feature/Setting: Automates new task for follow-up items with Asana Tasks API.
- Sample: Automate POST to /tasks for checklist generation.
3.10 Monday.com
- Feature/Setting: Automation on board item creation for new shift, with workflow automation triggers.
- Sample: Automate GraphQL mutation to create_item.
3.11 Salesforce Health Cloud
- Feature/Setting: Automates care team member messages and shift notes via REST API.
- Sample: Automate POST to /services/data/vXX.X/sobjects/Case.
3.12 ServiceNow
- Feature/Setting: Automates assignment and notification to next shift clinician using Incident API.
- Sample: Automate POST to /api/now/table/incident.
3.13 Zoom
- Feature/Setting: Automates scheduled huddle invite with Zoom API.
- Sample: Automate POST to /users/me/meetings.
3.14 Webex Teams
- Feature/Setting: Automating team notification with message API for real-time shift update.
- Sample: Automate POST to /v1/messages.
3.15 Outlook
- Feature/Setting: Scheduled automated emails and calendar invites via Microsoft Graph.
- Sample: Automate POST to /me/sendMail and /me/events.
3.16 Google Sheets
- Feature/Setting: Automates row update for handoff logs using Sheets API.
- Sample: Automate PUT to /v4/spreadsheets/{spreadsheetId}/values/{range}.
3.17 Trello
- Feature/Setting: Automates card creation for patient follow-up list.
- Sample: Automate POST to /1/cards.
3.18 Jira
- Feature/Setting: Automates ticketing/follow-up tasks via Issue API.
- Sample: Automate POST to /rest/api/3/issue.
3.19 DocuSign
- Feature/Setting: Automate signature requests for critical orders or handoff receipts.
- Sample: Automate POST to /v2.1/accounts/{accountId}/envelopes.
3.20 Zapier
- Feature/Setting: Automates multi-app workflows for messaging, logging, and notifications.
- Sample: Automate handoff trigger to auto-send, log, and alert in sequence.
3.21 Microsoft Power Automate
- Feature/Setting: Automates event-driven flows for shift change via triggers from supported apps.
- Sample: Configure trigger “When a row is added” for clinical logs to automate email and chat.

Benefits

4.1 Automates consistency in communication and reduces risk of missed information.
4.2 Automation provides audit trails for compliance and process improvement.
4.3 Automates time tracking and accountability, supporting performance metrics.
4.4 Automatedly improves speed and quality of handoff, enhancing patient safety.
4.5 Automator enables scalable, repeatable, and fully automatable workflows adaptable to changes in protocols.