Transfer of Care is the time interval commencing at the time an ambulance arrives at hospital to the conclusion of a structured clinical handover and offloading of the patient from the ambulance stretcher and/or when the ambulance paramedics are no longer required.
Transfer of Care is a tier 1 Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in the service agreements between the Ministry of Health and all local health districts and specialty health networks.
All NSW facilities that have an Emergency Department have a target of offloading 90% of patients within 30 minutes. Transfer of Care data is available for access by NSW Health employees who have a personal login to the NSW Health Transfer of Care Reporting System (TCRS) website.
The Whole of Health Program team is working closely with districts and networks to ensure accuracy of data through improved recording processes of ambulance arrivals and the retrospective cleansing of data. The TCRS website is being updated to improve usability and enhance functionality.
An example of NSW Ambulance assisting paramedics is the development of a Frequently Asked Questions document to promote the management of prescheduled workloads.
