Situation of Interfacility Patient Transfer in Southern Thailand

Abstract

 The interfacility patients transfer has impacts on life saving, treating illnesses, and quality of life of the population which needs a systematic management approach and should be appropriate for the area and health setting context. This qualitative research examined the patient transfer situation in Southern Thailand from 26 informants including 5 physicians and 21 nurses working in a regional and 4 tertiary hospitals. Who were recruited using purposive sampling. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, conducted once per person for 40–60 minutes using seven guided-questions that were validated by 3 experts. The collected data were analyzed using content analysis.
The research findings were the experiences related to patient transfers between healthcare facilities in southern hospitals encompassed 3 main issues and 10 sub-issues: I. Pre-transfer Management – Coordination impacted readiness, nurse availability and competency, delayed acceptance increased patient risk, and information given influenced patients and families decisions. II. During Transfer – Nurses responded to emergencies using knowledge and experience, collaborated with receiving teams, managed unexpected events, and provided compassionate care. III. Post-transfer Management – Issues included redundant information transfer and handover delays due to poor coordination, changing patient conditions, and unprepared receiving teams.
The study results can be used as fundamental information for developing a referral system that is suitable for the context and enhancing the capabilities of service providers to improve the quality of patient care in the southern region.