Supporting Information Handovers: Lessons From First Response

Candidate: Shannon Coates
Type: Master of Arts (MA), School of Interactive Arts and Technology
Date: December 13, 2010
Senior Supervisor: Ellen Balka
Thesis: Download Thesis Document

Abstract

This thesis addresses the challenges associated with the handover of information in the
pre-hospital care chain, with specific attention to the information management issues
experienced by first responders. The intention of this work was to develop a more complete
understanding of the stakeholders that exist in this system, the data they work with, and their
needs in terms of data fields and formatting. The investigation of handover processes in this
document includes an overview of information collection, record-keeping and communication
practices and protocols used by first responders, which was informed by data drawn from an
ethnographic case study conducted in Whistler, British Columbia, during the summer of 2009.
This material forms the foundation for design guidelines for new technology. This thesis
considers the tools currently in use, as well as an understanding of the environmental and
cognitive constraints that are intrinsic to crisis management as a domain, in order to offer
concrete recommendations for future innovation.

Keywords: information handovers; health care; crisis management; first response;
design guidance