IntroductionThis assignment aims to review the concept of nursing shift handover. The nursing handover can be defined as an important moment for the exchange of information pertinent to the ongoing care of one's patients (Pothier, Monteiro, Nooktlar et al. 2005). Delivery methods are varied, from tape-recorded, verbal, bedside or typed sheets. In 2010 there were 352,104 registered nurses, midwives and healthcare professionals working in the NHS (RCN, 2011). All of these will participate in a regular exchange of information, in hospitals this passage occurs at least twice a day. In 2009/2010 there were 16,806,200 hospital admissions to NHS hospitals (IC NHS, 2011). Information about their care would be exchanged during shift changes, with the quality of each handover ensuring relevant care. As a result, we can see that handovers impact thousands of nursing staff along with thousands of patients in hospital settings. The Health & Safety Executive (1996) stated that handover has several requirements, in particular that communication between shifts should be accurate and free of misunderstanding. . The need to improve transfers is recognized internationally along with the obstacles to overcome. Solutions must address healthcare workers' resistance to change, while understanding their time pressures. Furthermore, issues of staffing levels, language differences and lack of research must be taken into account (WHO, 2007). According to Prouse (1995 cited by Carayon) the cost of a handover in a UK hospice was approximately £80, (with inflation £125 (This is Money, 2011)). Furthermore, Burke (1999) suggested that the use of recorded deliveries saves a department £16,000 per year, which can… halfway through… 400 results if refined with quantitative or qualitative keywords. Finally, CINAHL produced the best results using a basic search using the term 'nursing transition', resulting in 23 articles. Each database requires different techniques, sometimes narrowing or opening search parameters. Date and location parameters were used. Consequently, from 2001 onwards, documents had to be original and from the UK, thus avoiding cultural discrepancies and ensuring applicability to practice. Furthermore, they had to reside in hospital and preferably in a ward. The selected qualitative paper was "A qualitative study on the practice and function of handover" (Kerr, 2001) and the quantitative paper was "A pilot study to show the loss of important data in nursing handover" (Pothier D. , Monteiro P., Nooktlar M. et al., 2005). These will now be criticized one after the other.