Analysis of Communication Content on Bedside Rounds in a Hospital - Implications for Patient Centered Communication

Abstract

Purpose: Few studies on bedside rounds have focused on the principles of patient-centered communication (PCC). This study pursued three objectives. First, we investigated the verbal contents of bedside rounds from the PCC perspective. Next, we analyzed inpatient surveys concerning patients’ experience of and perspective regarding bedside rounds. Finally, we identified which factors affect patient satisfaction levels.Methods: To evaluate doctor-patient communication, the contents of bedside rounds from 151 patients (88 in medical wards and 63 in surgical wards) were analyzed using the Roter Interaction Analysis System. An inpatient survey was also conducted to obtain further information about patient experience.Results: The average duration of bedside rounds was 71.3 seconds. The distribution of conversations between doctors and patients was significantly different, with doctors accounting for 62% and patients for 38% of the total (p<.001). Both doctors (44.7%) and patients (40.5%) considered provision of biomedical information as the most important aspect of communication. On the other hand, the proportion of psychological-social communication was relatively low in both groups, at 2.3% and 4.2%, respectively. In the inpatient survey, 40.8% of respondents reported being uninformed about the ward round in advance, while 44.7% stated that the rounds did not take place at the pre-informed time. While 66.7% of participants felt that the interaction during rounds was sufficient, those who felt that they had insufficient round time were the least satisfied. There was a positive correlation between sufficiency of the bedside round duration and overall satisfaction with bedside round (p<.01).Conclusion: The findings of this study indicate that neither the verbal contents of the bedside rounds nor the overall patient satisfaction adequately meet the conditions for patient centeredness.