Hourly Rounding: A strategy to improve patient satisfaction scores - Research Paper Example

Download file to see previous pages... From the perspective of a health care institution patient satisfaction is of critical importance. In addition to providing repute for the health care institution, the very existence of the health care institution depends on patient satisfaction. A past record of high levels of patient satisfaction is responsible for patients seeking health care services from the same health care institution. Dissatisfaction among patients would lead them to seeking their health care requirements from other health care institutions, where they believe they would derive better satisfaction of services provided. Word of mouth spreading of satisfaction would only lead to other patents seeking health care services from the institution. These aspects need to be looked upon from the growing demand of excellence in services received by health care service users. This only reinforces the need for health care service institutions to bring about changes in their approaches to provide services that meet the parameters of excellence form the consumers’ perspective. However, to achieve such an objective, it is necessary to discover the best means for achieving it (Grove, 2008). Hourly rounding originated in England, where such rounding by nurses is termed as patient comfort rounds. Hourly rounding by nurses follows a predetermined protocol, which is based on the four Ps of pain, personal needs, positioning and placement of patient care. During hourly rounding nurses in addition to providing care based on the 4Ps also look into issues of changing of dressings or giving medications and patient education. Hourly rounding is the basis of compassionate care and strengthening of the nurse patient relationship, wherein the key factor is the increase in anticipation of patient needs and providing the required attention for it (Charmel, Frameton, & Plantree, 2009). Hourly rounding by nurses has been recommended as a means to the objective of enhanced patient satisfaction. However, though the current literature on the effects of hourly rounding on patient satisfaction remains incomplete. Therefore any effort in adding to the body of knowledge on the benefits of nurses hourly rounding on patients will only assist in providing better evidence for its use in increasing patient satisfaction levels (Tea, Ellison & Feghall, 2008). The Studor Study Group, 2007, recommends the use of nurses hourly rounding as an approach to raise the level of patient satisfaction based on the experiences of increased patient satisfaction levels since introducing nurses hourly rounding at the Sacred Heart Hospital, Pensacola, FLA, since 2006. Theorist Jean Watson, 2005, lays the down the basis for nurses hourly rounding becoming useful in increasing patient satisfaction levels through the concept that care and love are strong, yet mysterious forces in nature. In this concept love and care for others has a strong interrelationship with spiritual inspiration for caring of the self. Caring at the individual level expands into the social level. Extrapolating this concept into the environment of the health care institutions involves incorporation of the care and love sciences into the clinical practices of the health care professionals, such that an environment for healing and rehabilitation results (Watson, 2005). McLaughlin and Bulla, 2010, suggest that hourly rounding not only offers benefits for patients in ...Download file to see next pagesRead More