Transforming Transition: enhancing practice in haemophilia

Transition is the term used to describe the process of approaching and crossing the chronological boundary between paediatric and adult care services. Transfer of care describes the administrative arrangements associated with moving from a paediatric to an adult service across this boundary.

Transforming Transition was a nurse-led initiative designed to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and experience to enhance transition practice in the UK. The aims of the programme were to secure changes in working practices that enabled nurses to drive improved transition outcomes, enhance self-management by people with haemophilia and develop clinical leadership. From the outset of the programme it was clear that there were differences in practice and that sharing practice would be one route to addressing some of these variations.

As a result of the knowledge and experience shared through the programme, resources described in this paper are available to all haemophilia centres. Sharing between people with haemophilia, their families and carers, and the haemophilia clinical team have resulted in the development of practical resources that enhance practice within the haemophilia centre. Sharing of practice between nurses and young people with haemophilia at the programme workshops provided a focus for development of local and regional action plans, a framework for reviewing progress, the introduction of transition clinics and improved transition documentation.