Bedside Reporting, Research Paper Example

Bedside reporting provides crucial information pertinent to patient care. A practice observed to ensure that the information regarding the patient is relayed to the concerned party to ensure quick recovery. In the journal article of Angela Lewis, ‘Inspiring Patient Centered Care Through Bedside Reporting.’ Found in the Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, & Neonatal Nursing Volume 40, Issue Supplement s1, Article first published online: 2 JUN 2011.

This article is a proposal of an innovative program. It aimed at improving the health services by changing the nursing fraternity by proposing to implement the bedside reporting. The plan aimed at equipping the nurses with extra techniques to provide improved health services to patients (Angela Lewis 2011).

The purpose of the author was to provide a remedy aimed at improving the services in a birthing center. Improving the birthing services in this center targeted to utilize bed reporting as a tool for the nurses to improve the health services. These birthing centre provided services of three thousand births a year. The author advocacy of establishment of bedside reporting aimed at improvement of safety during birth, increasing the patient’s satisfaction, and finally increase trust between the patient and the nurses. To implement the bedside reporting the nursing council and management proposed the following change to the traditional practices. Firstly, the nursing staff was educated on the importance of improving the handoffs and implementing the bedside reporting. Secondly, staffs were educated on safety ways of providing sensitive information before the patient without affecting the quality of health care provided to the patient. Bedside reporting gives the patient the opportunity to raise concern on the way he would like the treatment conducted. Incorporation of the patient’s desires gives the patient say in determining the fate of his life (Angela Lewis 2011).

In implementing the program, staff reviewed the literature on the bedside reporting given to them. This provided deeper information on how to implement the program and tentative techniques needed to make it a success. The topics were discussed to the employees to inform on them on techniques needed in implementing the new program. The council of nurses acted as mentors to the nurses to provide a step to others in adoption of this noble program. They evaluated the program and made relevant correction make the project be a success.

The adoption of the bedside reporting aims at improving the patient care by focusing attention to patient. It also improves the faith the patient has on nurses. Finally, it allows the patient’s family to participate in the recovery process of the patient (Angela Lewis 2011).

However, adopting the bedside reporting cannot improve healthcare of individual in some instances. Firstly, the usefulness of the reports depends on the techniques of nurses, in that nurses differ in the degree of expertise. Secondly, some of the issues pertaining patients are extremely significant, and their closure to the patient may result to further deterioration of patient’s health. Therefore, bedside reporting should not be favored in some instances (A., Jones and Beck 2000). Finally, bedside reports become only meaningful if there is will and team work between the incoming and outgoing nurse. Once one of this component misses out it renders this practice worthlessly. Therefore, there is need to train the entire staff on the importance of teamwork and collaboration while discharging their duties. In addition, nurses need to be motivated to increase their willingness to work beyond their limit, to meet the goal of keeping the patient’s needs before their own needs (A., Jones and Beck 2000).

References

A., Rebecca, Patronis Jones, and Sharon E. Beck. Decision making in nursing. New York: Cengage Learning, 2000.

Angela Lewis. “Inspiring Patient Centered Care Through.” Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, & Neonatal Nursing, 2011.