In a nutshell :
SBAR – quick / rapid report handoff format adopted by hospitals.
why the submarine pic ? SBAR format was initially designed by submarine personnel.
The long winded version :
(in a submarine : deep, deep underwater with limited oxygen supply and tons of crushing pressure all around, there is not time for lengthy speeches – its more like “you have 2 seconds to tell me what’s wrong and how you would fix it”.
I was told a long time ago, by my supervisor back then, “don’t come to me with just a problem … have a suggested solution as well”. I have always liked that management style and give her credit for introducing me to that notion.
The third point, always know the history of anything and everything (in this case : SBAR came from the military).
We should treat a patient in crisis just like we were having a crisis in a submarine :
tell me the problem.
give me relevant background quickly.
tell me why you think the problem happened.
tell me how you would fix it.