Effects of a Communication Program Based on the SMCR Model via the LINE Application on the Quality of Referral Communication among Nurses in a Private Hospital
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Abstract
This quasi-experimental research, a two-group pretest–posttest design aimed to compare the mean perceived quality scores of patient referral communication between an experimental group that received the intervention program and a control group that adhered to conventional practice. The purposive sample consisted of 70 professional nurses responsible for patient referral duties at a private hospital. The research instruments included: 1) a communication program based on the SMCR Model delivered via the LINE application, and 2) a perceived quality of referral communication questionnaire, which demonstrated a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of .98. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-tests.
The results indicated that, after the intervention, the experimental group had a significantly higher mean overall perceived quality score for referral communication compared with both their pre-intervention scores and those of the control group at the .05 level of significance (t = 33.64, 11.37; p < .001).
The SMCR Model–based communication program was found to be effective in enhancing the quality of nurses’ referral communication by ensuring that information was correct, complete, clear, and concise. This improvement contributes to enhancing patient referral safety, developing nurses’ information technology skills, and improving the overall quality of nursing services.
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