When Giving Report Please....

[lilarox]

Everyone has an opinion on the best way to give report, and opinions on what not to do. I like to believe that most of the time I do a good job. There are days where things just do not flow well, and I do not win report giving awards. That said, I always try to be respectful of the oncoming shift when giving report. I think it is important to mentally put yourself in their shoes (or think back 12 hours...) so you give the report in a manner in which you wish to receive it.

So I'd like this thread to be a sort of feedback for report giving. It can even be a dumping ground for things that irritate you while getting report. All positive and negative comments can teach us something, and I am constantly trying to improve.

So I'll start, with more of a dumping versus a positive uplifting.

We have a nurse that tells you NOTHING in report, to sum it up it goes something like this: You have a patient in room xx, Any questions? Obviously he/she says other things, what he/she does say however is usually superfluous. Granted report is really short, guess that gives me plenty of time to figure out all that I needed to know.

Okay I will leave it at that and let everyone else chime in. For now.

[RNperdiem, RN]

Bedside reporting is a mixed bag, and not practical in all cases, but if a nurse is known for incomplete reports, I would steer them towards the patient room where you can see the patient. Sometimes being able to see the patient gives you an idea of what questions to ask.

[loriangel14, RN]

It really depends on the unit. I deal with a lot of patients that stay for weeks and months.We have people that are waiting for nursing home placement and really there is no change and we all know them so well that the report is literally " no change".

The one thing that is annoying is people that try to insert long rambling anecdotes into the report.Just stick to what is new and pertinent.Just try to keep it short and sweet and hit the important stuff.

We were threatened with going to bedside report but luckily they changed their minds.

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

After the "how are you's" it would be appreciated to just have report and get out. Certain people seem to think that report time is an opportunity to discuss their personal issues, tell irrelevant social tales, etc. That's fine on occasion, but not every shift. Report is supposed to be patient focused.

[Nurse SMS, MSN, RN]

All I know is my last few shifts I have had some VERY pertinent information left out of report and thus leaving me swinging in the wind looking like an idiot when asked by patient, family or docs/therapists/social worker about it. Things like......a second planned surgery. A DVT in the left arm. Having been admitted with chest pain the week before and had stents placed at that time. A stage II decubitus. Things that sure, I would find out once I had the chance to review the chart (which, face it....often doesn't happen as soon as we would like). All I ask is report be thorough and accurate.

[RNGriffin]

Do not tell me about how many "Baby mamas" my patient has. I do not care, as it's not pertinent to the patient's condition. I don't want to hear about the daughter bringing cookies during the day. Save the full on lab report....also, If you're going to spend 45 mins telling me why you couldn't get TED hoses on the patient 1hr ago....please spare me the excuses & tell me what needs to be done.

[loriangel14, RN]

We only have one person that gives report anyways ( charge from the off going shift) and our charges are pretty good at giving a quick report so they can eave.

[nowim clean]

Why are they here, what are we doing for them. Are they alert going for any procedures, next.

[RNGriffin]

We only have one person that gives report anyways ( charge from the off going shift) and our charges are pretty good at giving a quick report so they can eave.

Is your facility hiring? LOL!

[Fiona59]

Just tell me vitals stable. I don't want to know every dose of insulin in the las 24 hors and what they had for snacks, especially if they are going home this morning.

I do want to know who has crazy spouses.

[RNGriffin]

I forgot to add what I would like to hear in report:

Name

Age

Admitting dx accompanied with does he or she require coverage( if this a diabetic patient)

Critical Lab Values

Any current IV meds or drips infusing

LOC( pertinent in case I go in there talking to Mr.Doe who would like to be called Donald Duck)

Are there any dressing and when were they changed

Procedures( unlikely during my shift)

Any complications within the past 3 days ( dyspnea, chest pain, dizziness etc)

Are we on a turning schedule, is the patient ambulating, how is the patient transferring(if at all)

That's all the report I need. I'll look in the system to determine the I&O( unless this is a renal patient)

I can look at the chair in the room to determine who the visitor is.

I can look at the past labs in the computer..

Just tell me what to expect when i walk in the room and what to keep an eye on, that's what reports are about. It's not to have a social gathering about the patient.

I would like to rant on the annoying nurses who are receiving report but want a 45 min run down on each patient. I have one at my job who failed out of PA and NP school. She annoys me in, not only does she want irrelevant reports, but she also provides the incorrect information to the patients....

[RainMom]

There used to be an RN on my floor, veteran 30+ yrs, who was difficult to give report to. She wanted bare bones type info, which was fine to me, but sometimes it was like I was literally chasing her from one room to the next. I got pretty good at just hitting the highlights for her, but there were still days that I know things were missed because I had a hard time slowing her down to listen. I remember waking up one day thinking "I didn't tell her about that new PICC dressing change!" And of course it didn't get done. As hard as it was to give her info in report, eve shift had it worse. When she gave report, it was literally "They're good", very little info relayed. Don't get me wrong, she's a good nurse, just really crappy at relaying/receiving report. I think she would have been happy walking into her shift completely blind to the status of her pts though, figuring it out as she went.