SBAR Shift Handoff Scenario With Model Answer

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Outgoing nurse case brief

A shift handoff

It is 7:00 p.m. on 5 West. You are Casey Nolan, RN, giving report to Dana Whitfield, RN, at the nurses' station. An item of care is still due after your shift ends.

Patient

Diane Foster, 68 years; fictional MRN 730516

Location

5 West, room 521

Admission

Postoperative day 1 after laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis. Observation continues after nausea and limited oral intake; discharge awaits intake and mobility review.

History / status

Hypertension; no known medication allergies; full code

Latest assessment

At 6:15 p.m.: alert, oriented, no nausea or dizziness; incisions clean and dry. Pre-dose pain 4/10 at the incision with movement; patient goal 3/10 or less.

Recent medication

Acetaminophen 650 mg orally at 6:15 p.m., administered under the existing order.

Mobility / intake

Tolerating oral fluids. Fall precautions and one-person assistance for walking under the current care plan.

Reassess pain at 7:15 p.m., one hour after the oral dose. Assist with toileting when requested; check pain and dizziness before standing and provide one-person assistance. If pain remains above the goal, reassess and contact the covering surgical clinician for review of the pain plan. Promptly report new or increasing abdominal pain, fever, vomiting or changed vital signs; use the emergency pathway for deterioration.

The patient requests help to the bathroom when needed. A daughter asked about visiting tomorrow. This excerpt is not the complete medication record.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

SBAR preparation & reflection

Prepare your handoff

Outgoing nurse: Casey Nolan, RN | Receiving nurse: Dana Whitfield, RN | Patient: Diane Foster

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Receiver role card

Play the receiving nurse

You are Dana Whitfield, RN, receiving report on Diane Foster from Casey Nolan, RN. Receiver: cooperative.

Opening

"I am ready for report." Listen without interrupting.

Let the learner finish

Allow the learner to select the information and propose a plan. Do not reveal the pending task while they are preparing or speaking.

Clarify if needed

After the report, if the plan is unclear, ask: "What am I responsible for next, and when?" The observer records whether the learner supplied this before or after your question.

Close the handoff

Once action, owner, and time are clear, summarize the agreed plan. If essential information is still missing after one clarification, take it to the debrief.

Keep the case consistent

• Do not invent a new vital sign, medication, order, or change in condition. If asked for missing information, say it is not provided.
• Accept equivalent wording. The learner may introduce the patient or lead with the pending task.
• Do not supply the model answer if the learner gets stuck. One clarification is enough; discuss remaining gaps afterward.

The outgoing learner has a guided brief and may use the worksheet prompts. Keep this role card separate during preparation.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Observer reference

Facts for the observer

Keep this page beside the observer worksheet. Check the words heard against these facts without giving the outgoing learner the model answer.

Patient

Diane Foster, 68 years; fictional MRN 730516

Location

5 West, room 521

Admission

Postoperative day 1 after laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis. Observation continues after nausea and limited oral intake; discharge awaits intake and mobility review.

History / status

Hypertension; no known medication allergies; full code

Latest assessment

At 6:15 p.m.: alert, oriented, no nausea or dizziness; incisions clean and dry. Pre-dose pain 4/10 at the incision with movement; patient goal 3/10 or less.

Recent medication

Acetaminophen 650 mg orally at 6:15 p.m., administered under the existing order.

Mobility / intake

Tolerating oral fluids. Fall precautions and one-person assistance for walking under the current care plan.

Vitals at 6:15 p.m.

Blood pressure: 128/76 mmHg; Heart rate: 82/min; Respiratory rate: 16/min; Oxygen saturation: 97% on room air; Temperature: 98.6 °F (37.0 °C)

Plan and uncertainty

Reassess pain at 7:15 p.m., one hour after the oral dose. Assist with toileting when requested; check pain and dizziness before standing and provide one-person assistance. If pain remains above the goal, reassess and contact the covering surgical clinician for review of the pain plan. Promptly report new or increasing abdominal pain, fever, vomiting or changed vital signs; use the emergency pathway for deterioration.

The response to the recent acetaminophen dose is not known. The patient requests help to the bathroom; provide one-person assistance. A correct handoff identifies this uncertainty and transfers the reassessment to a named nurse at the supplied time.

Credit equivalent wording and an appropriate interpretation. Do not credit an invented improvement or a reassessment described as already completed.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Observer worksheet

Observe the handoff

Patient: Diane Foster | Guided brief | Cooperative receiver

Outgoing learner: ____________________ Observer: ____________________

O = observed as described; N = not yet demonstrated; N/A = no opportunity (explain). Note missing parts and prompts (Y/N). Use the reference. No total score.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Instructor guide

Run the activity

Guided brief | Cooperative receiver. Handoff at 7:00 p.m.

The brief hints that a task remains due; the worksheet supplies SBAR prompts.

Learning objectives

• Select relevant information and distinguish findings from assumptions.
• Communicate the pending action, owner, time, and supplied contingency.
• Invite clarification and obtain confirmation that the plan is understood.

Suggested timing: about 20 minutes

Print for your session

For 24 students in 8 groups: 8 outgoing handouts, 8 sets of receiver/observer materials (3 pages per set; 24 single-sided sheets), and 1 guide per facilitator. Receiver: page 1. Observer: pages 2-3. Three rotations need 24 nurse handouts and 24 observer worksheets (page 3); reuse the cards and references.

Facilitation

The suggested timing is a starting point; adjust it for your group. Space groups so reports can be heard and agree how to request faculty help; stagger rounds if needed. Review the facts before teaching and keep answers with faculty. For bedside report, use the companion guide.

Written for US practice settings; adapt terms and policies for your setting.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Facilitator and observer preparation

Prebrief and observation

Read aloud: a short prebrief

“This is formative practice, not a graded assessment. We will discuss the words heard, then repeat the conversation with the same nurse learner. Equivalent wording is welcome.”

“Our goal is a focused handoff that keeps care safe across the shift change. Two chairs represent the nurses’ station.”

“The patient and chart are fictional. Work with the supplied facts as if they were real, and tell us if something prevents you from doing that. Everyone brings useful experience and is here to learn.”

“Treat one another respectfully. The receiver has a scripted role; resistance is part of the activity, not a judgment of the learner. Anyone may say pause. We will clarify the task, support the learner, and restart if needed. Keep identifiable comments within the learning group.”

“This is a focused report at the nurses’ station, not a complete bedside report. Use the supplied chart and care plan.”

“If information is missing, say it is not provided and explain what you would check. Do not invent a new result, order, or patient response. The receiver should answer ‘That information is not provided.’ Faculty will clarify anything needed to continue.”

“The observer records all marks and prompts, using the reference to check facts and noting brief exact words. The receiver follows the role card and helps clarify what was said during debrief. Start with the learner’s view, then offer evidence and one useful next step.”

Observer only: calibrate privately before starting

Mark O when the behavior is observed and N when it is not yet demonstrated as described. Record any missing parts in the evidence notes; there is no partial category. Use N/A only when there was no scripted opportunity, and explain why. Mark a prompt when someone supplied a missing cue or suggested answer. A scripted challenge or request to repeat an unclear word is not a prompt. Do not total the marks or assign a pass score.

Focus detailed notes on one or two behaviors. For a row with several parts, mark N if a part is missing, then record what was present and what remains. Faculty resolve uncertain marks from the words heard. Binary marks keep feedback simple and consistent with the companion guide; this case checklist is not the validated SBAR-LA rubric.

Example

“Dana Whitfield will reassess” establishes an owner but no time: mark the owner row O and timing row N. Note “owner named; time missing.” “The pain is better” has no supporting reassessment.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Facilitation notes

Debrief and try again

Start with the learner

• What was the handoff priority?
• Which prompt helped? What could you do without it?
• What did you leave out, and why?

Ask for evidence

• Observer: quote the owner and timing, noting any prompts.
• Receiver: what did you understand you were responsible for?
• Did the learner distinguish the earlier pain assessment from a response that was still unknown?

Documentation practice

Record the agreed task, owner, time and contingency. This confirms the handoff plan, not a completed reassessment or medication-order read-back.

Second attempt

Repeat with the same learner and options. Choose one target and record the retry in the second observer column.

Common difficulties

Later learners have prior exposure. Use an unfamiliar case to explore transfer; this retry is practice on a known task.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Faculty reference

Curriculum links

Suggested connections for lesson planning. These are limited mappings by the resource author, not endorsement, competency certification, or a validated scoring framework.

AACN Essentials

Domain 6, Interprofessional Partnerships, 6.1b: “Use various communication tools and techniques effectively.” Evidence here is the learner’s SBAR, clarification, and confirmation of responsibilities.

QSEN

Teamwork and Collaboration: explain the concern, clarify roles, and agree next steps. Safety: distinguish known findings from assumptions and communicate unresolved needs. Observe these behaviors; do not infer an entire competency from one exercise.

NCSBN Clinical Judgment Measurement Model

Recognize and analyze cues: distinguish the earlier pain score from the unknown medication response. Generate solutions and take action are represented only by communicating an existing care plan and transferring responsibility. This is limited clinical judgment practice; it does not test independent treatment selection or evaluation of the patient’s subsequent response.

A clearer second conversation demonstrates improvement on this familiar task. It does not by itself establish transfer to an unseen patient or completion of the clinical judgment cycle.

Nursing faculty teaching resource

Sources and reuse

Sources, review and reuse

Sources and related teaching resources

AACN Essentials: Domain 6

QSEN: Prelicensure competencies

NCSBN: Clinical Judgment Measurement Model

INACSL: Simulation standards and prebriefing

AHRQ TeamSTEPPS: Handoff

OpenStax: Pain assessment and reassessment

SBAR authoring guide: bedside report, critical results, orders and read-back

Before you teach

Written by the Lingua CoPilot Medical team from the sources listed. These cases have not been clinically reviewed. The model answer is one possible response, not a standard of care.

Lingua CoPilot Medical | Version 1.0 | Revised November 4, 2026.

Original case materials: CC BY 4.0. Copy, adapt and share with attribution to Lingua CoPilot Medical, a license link, and an indication of changes. External sources retain their own terms. Review adaptations before teaching; keep faculty answers separate during first attempts.

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International