Printable hospital template
Hospital shift handover sheet for open administrative tasks
Hand over unfinished desk work with its current position, next action and an accepting colleague, so a shift change does not restart the same investigation.
- Written by
- RizCare
- Published
- Last reviewed
RizCare's suggested worksheet. Adapt to your hospital. https://riz.care/library/templates/clinic-shift-open-task-sheet
For outgoing and incoming shift staff.
The incoming receptionist sees transfer being checked beside an invoice. Which transfer, who checked it and what remains to do? A useful handover answers those questions before the outgoing colleague leaves.
Keep this sheet for unfinished administrative work. Clinical handover needs the hospital's clinical record and the responsible team; a task reference here cannot replace it.
Print this page or save it as a PDF from your browser. The print layout contains only the blank worksheet and its completion note. Fill it in within your hospital.
Practice: ____________________ Prepared by: ____________________ Date: ______________
| Task reference | Current position | Next action / review | Accepted by | Completion evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blank entry | ||||
| Blank entry | ||||
| Blank entry | ||||
| Blank entry | ||||
| Blank entry |
Keep completed copies with the staff authorised to use them.
How to use it
Write the next action
Choose tasks that genuinely remain open. Give each one a protected reference, the last confirmed observation and the next action. Prefer bank reviewer to confirm credit at the agreed check time over follow up payment. Record an existing enquiry reference so the incoming colleague does not open a second investigation or repeat a payment entry.
Hand over responsibility explicitly
Discuss the remaining work with the colleague taking it over. Record acceptance and the agreed review point. If nobody available has authority to do the task, identify the manager who must assign it. Do not close your responsibility by writing the name of somebody who has not received the handover.
Carry forward only what remains
At the next check, record the result and its supporting reference. Close completed actions and transfer unfinished ones with their history intact. Separate a newly discovered task from the original so each has a clear owner. File the sheet under the hospital's record policy once the handover is complete; avoid accumulating patient-related lists on the desk.
What each field means
- Current position
- State the last established fact and its time. A guess about what another department probably did will mislead the next colleague.
- Next action
- Describe something the receiving person can actually do within their role. If a decision requires a manager, record the referral to that manager.
- Accepted by
- The receiving colleague acknowledges the task and review point. The outgoing signature alone does not show that responsibility reached the next shift.
Completed fictional example
The fictional task is an administrative payment enquiry. The worksheet does not contain clinical handover details.
| Task reference | Current position | Next action / review | Accepted by | Completion evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TR-021 | Credit check requested at 13:00 | Get bank check at handover | Billing B, 14:00 | Pending |
Related resources
Sources and review
The worksheet design and examples are RizCare's recommendations. The sources below support the background discussion; they do not endorse this form.
- Workflow Assessment for Health IT Toolkit (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality). Read 9 September 2026.