nursing behind night shift report

nursing behind night shift report

The nursing patient care system is a practice that develops and brings new ideas, deeds, and knowledge that further responsibilities and ensures patients’ and nurses’ needs are satisfied. One of the practices that are evolving includes the change of shift report, which is developing from the traditional nurse shift to bedside shift report. The difference of shift report is the moment when the care of a patient is transferred from one nurse to the other at a given time. The process involves different matters, such as the responsibility and accountability of a patient. Traditional nurse shift, which occurs at many patient care stations, can be done in a hallway, written format with information on patient’s status and needs, conference room, face to face, or even through video and audio record. Reports given away from the bedside need a nurse to visualize the situation of the patient, and crucial information and care are usually lost.

In the acute care setting, patients’ needs are crucial for better treatment, and a traditional shift report has been associated with many falls. It is of the essence to increase bedside shift reports to improve patient and nurse satisfaction. My PICOT question being how does bedside shift report patient’s and nurses’ satisfaction among adult patients in the acute care setting, compared to reporting at the traditional nurses’ station? One of the problems associated with the conventional nurse shift report is patients not participating in the daily care plan. Usual care does not allow patients the chance to participate in daily care plans as the various aspects are not assessed. In bedside care, the patient assessment includes a general overview of their conditions and essential elements of their care plans. Bedside nurse shift report allows outgoing nurses to introduce the oncoming one to the patient and provides an assessment of the patient progress. The incoming nurse assesses the patient safety environment and different aspects such as wound sites, dressings, and abnormal breathing patterns. According to Jeffs et al. (2013), engaging the patients in the reported plan helps in having access to their health status and procedures while the questions asked during the process also allows the patient to participate, thus reducing their anxiety..

Traditional shift report also does not allow the patient a chance to be aware of staff change. Nurse shift change in the classic style can be conducted in a conference room, in the hallway, through a videotape or audiotape. This process can lead to loss of crucial information or lead to errors during information collection. During bedside shift change, the report is conducted, and the patients are made aware of nurse change as the outgoing nurse introduces the oncoming nurse. This process also provides the oncoming nurse with a chance to communicate and be involved with the patient as they are kept informed by the nurse on different care aspects. According to Jeffs et al. (2013), the incoming nurse is made aware of the various aspects of patients’ health, and the patient is made aware while essential data, which is crucial in providing better health care and manage the patient effectively, is provided. Also, this may lead to an improved relationship between a nurse and a patient.

In a traditional shift report, the nurses also may not be up-to-date with the patient information. According to Maxson et al. (2012), patients who are involved in bedside shift reports are more likely to provide input on their progress, which can be crucial for their care. Patients who were involved in the traditional handoff system perceived that the information they provide was for the nurse staff alone, so they did not offer much information on their progress. Bedside report allows the nurse a chance to communicate with the patient on various aspects as he can be able to visualize and assess the patient and his environment. The information provided is up to date, which helps in increasing the overall safety of the patient.

In a traditional handoff report, the nurses can also be unavailable due to various matters. The introduction of a bedside report helps to avoid the different accidents and falls that may be involved in the change when the oncoming nurse has not arrived. According to McAllen et al. (2018), the visual assessment provides the nurse with the chance to assess the environment of the patient and different matters associated with it. Bedside shift report allows the nurses to evaluate the patient and his situation, which helps in preventing the falls. The nurses also get stuck to the room until the oncoming nurse arrives. This means that the care and safety of the patient are assured in case of any accidents occurring.

In conclusion, bedside shift reports have got a positive influence on nurse and patients satisfaction. It allows the nurses the chance to visualize and assess the patient’s progress and environment. This is crucial in preventing the various falls and accidents associated with traditional shift change, where the nurse can be unavailable. Second, it also improves the relationship and involvement of the patient as various details, and crucial information is provided. The patients can produce input on their progress, which is essential to their care. The third is that the bedside shift report facilitates the provision of accurate and timely communication between the patients and the nurse. Information provided is usually up to date and thus facilitates the delivery of high quality information.

References

Jeffs, L., Scott, A., Simpson, E., Campbell, H., Irwin, T., Lo, J.. & Cardoso, R. (2013). The value of bedside shift reporting enhancing nurse surveillance, accountability, and patient safety. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 28(3), 226-232.

Maxson, P. M., Derby, K. M., Wrobleski, D. M., & Foss, D. M. (2012). Bedside nurse-to-nurse handoff promotes patient safety. Medsurg Nursing, 21(3), 140.

McAllen, E. R., Stephens, K., Swanson-Biearman, B., Kerr, K., & Whiteman, K. (2018). Moving shift report to the bedside: An evidence-based quality improvement project. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 23(2).