To Outline a Synthesis or Summary of two Quantitative Articles about Nursing Rounds - Research Paper Example

Meade, Amy L. Bursell and Lyn Ketelsen (2006) entitled “Effects of Nursing Rounds on Patients’ Call Light Use, Satisfaction and Safety” which found that hourly rounds by nursing personnel played a significant role in reducing patient falls as well as increasing their satisfaction while at the same time reducing the use of the call light. This study has been designed in a quasi- experimental like the previous study where hourly rounds are conducted by the nurses from two units namely 4S and 6S.

4S is a control unit where data was collected on an hourly round while 6S has been designed to maintain the current practice where there is no change implemented. Research has shown that falls among patients in the US are a problem given that 2.3 to 7 falls occur in U.S. hospitals every 1000 patient days and about 30-48% percent of these falls result in injury among both old and young patients. However, in this study, it has also been found that hourly nursing rounds can decrease the rate of falls among the patients by 52 %.

The study found that patients admitted in hospitals often require assistance with personal tasks such as the use of the toilet as well as during eating times where they will call for assistance using the call light. This study also found that the level of patient satisfaction is determined by his or her perception of the way a nurse conducts her duties. While the call light offers a lifeline to the patients in hospital, it has also been observed that it can be stressful on behalf of the practicing nurse.

It often contributes to issues such as fatigue among the nurses and this negatively impacts on their patient care management which is often compounded by the existing shortage of staff. Therefore, hourly rounds have been found to be effective in this particular study which was carried over a twelve month period. At least, the study has been carried over a long period compared to the previous one. The sampling method employed by the study is non-probability sample on all subjects who are 18 years and over admitted to 4 South (Oncology/OBGYN) or 6 South (Orthopedic/Neurology) at Hospital during the period of the research.

This method is ideal given that the results are likely to be reliable since it is inclusive of all subjects. This section also summarizes an article by Tucker, S.J. et al (2011) which is entitled "Outcomes and Challenges in Implementing Hourly Rounds to Reduce Falls in Orthopedic Units.” According to this article, patient falls remain a problem especially in acute care facilities as they have negative impacts such as injury to the affected people. Basically, patient fall can be described as unplanned descent to the floor (Curie, 2003).

These range from 1.7 to 25 per 1,000 patient days with approximately 6–44% of these resulting in injury. Thus, patient safety through the reduction of falls is a very important phenomenon in the health care industry and can be derived from implementing structured nursing rounds interventions (SNRIs) according to this particular study. This study has been designed to establish the rate of patient fall during the three period intervals namely: baseline, during the 12-week SNRI implementation, and 1-year following implementation.

According to this paper, evidence of effective interventions to prevent and reduce patient falls is mixed (Oliver et al. 2007; Currie 2008). However, in some studies like the work of Christine M. Meade, Amy L.