Table 1 The three main categories and seven sub-categories extracted, along with representative quotations

Individual Capabilities

Individual Knowledge

“When trained emergency staff handover a patient, they well-express the patient’s history and problems so that the recipient feels comfortable.”

Individual Experience

“I am more comfortable with someone with better and longer work experience because he or she knows better what is important when handing over a traffic accident injured.“

Development of Mutual Understanding

Common Educational Programs

“The personnel who participate in joint workshops have a better collaboration because of a greater understanding of each other’s problems.”

Sharing Experiences

“Staff who have experience in both pre-hospital and emergency departments better understand the current state of a person who has just been injured in an accident and is to be handed over.“

Empathic Behaviors

“Our friendship allows us to deliver and admit patients in a shorter time since we do not pay attention to trivial matters.”

Infrastructures and Processes

Adequate and Similar Equipment

“I do not have the opportunity to directly connect to the hospital from the accident scene. I cannot report the number of injured and the type of injuries to the hospital from the accident scene for them to be prepared.”

Defects and Disorganizations

“The form containing the written emergency report and patient’s history does not contain a number of important issues. For example, no blood sugar level is included for a patient with a low level of consciousness.”