Unexpected events during hospital-to-hospital transfers
Elucidating Non-Routine Events Arising from Interhospital Transfers
['FUNDING_OTHER'] · VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION · NIH-11307485
This project looks at unexpected problems Veterans experience when they are transferred between hospitals to help find and prevent safety risks.
Quick facts
| Phase | ['FUNDING_OTHER'] |
|---|---|
| Study type | Nih_funding |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION (nih funded) |
| Locations | 1 site (NASHVILLE, UNITED STATES) |
| Trial ID | NIH-11307485 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this research studies
If I am a Veteran moved from one hospital to another, this project will collect reports from clinicians, staff, and patients about any non-routine events that happened during my transfer. Researchers will review transfer paperwork and other documentation alongside validated surveys that capture deviations from standard care. They will train an optical character recognition and natural language processing tool called MIRROR EHR to pull details about these events from scanned medical records. The pilot focuses on transfers that begin in VA and non-VA emergency departments to learn where problems most often occur and how to reduce harm.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are Veterans who experienced an interhospital transfer with medical records available in the VA system or partnered hospitals.
Not a fit: Patients without a recent interhospital transfer or whose records are not accessible to the VA are unlikely to be helped directly by this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reduce errors and delays during hospital transfers and make care safer and less stressful for Veterans.
How similar studies have performed: Human factors work has used NRE surveys before to find safety problems, but automating detection from scanned transfer records with OCR/NLP is relatively new and pilot-stage.
Where this research is happening
NASHVILLE, UNITED STATES
- VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION — NASHVILLE, UNITED STATES (ACTIVE)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: WARD, MICHAEL J. — VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION
- Study coordinator: WARD, MICHAEL J.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.