Increasing Nurses' Time with Patients

[thinker]

I'm doing research on how to increase the amount of time nurses can spend with patients, and am looking for any input any of you out there might have. Right now, I'm focusing on how to reduce the length of nursing tasks (do you have examples of how your unit/hospital has *successfully* streamlined these tasks - like ADTs, documentation, report processes) and how to reduce the length of time nurses are spending on tasks they shouldn't have to be, but are (supply and equipment availability, coordination with ancillary departments, managing support staff, amount of time managing other caregivers). Any thoughts you have would be great! Especially if you know specifically the amount of time it saved (so that nurses could spend more time with patients), or how much it made your fellow nurses' lives easier. Thanks! Heidi

[Julie, RN]

How about actually charting at the bedside, especially if it is a lonely pt who doesn't talk alot (as to not distract you from precise charting)? Sometimes sitting in silence can be very soothing to an afraid/lonely pt. Delegating/teamwork can also effectively increase your nurse-pt time together. Another idea-clustering your tasks while in the pt's room gives you a longer span of time in the room and you can therapeutically talk with them during the "task completion" component. And last but not least, good time management will always take you a long way-like giving you more quality time with your pt's.

[This message has been edited by Julie,SN (edited July 15, 2000).]

[JillR]

Oral reports taped, or in person if done by exception, can save some time. At our facility we have a Kardex written up on all patients, on this the diet, activity level, IV info, foley info, labs and xrays that were done and ones that are ordered, medical history, procedures ordered, allergies, ect are all entered. I refuse to repeat this info verbally, because the people getting the report can get it by looking at the kardex. Then I only report on these things if there is an abnormailty, such as the need to irrigate a foley, ect, Hope this helps.

Oh another thing that would help is to get rid of documenting some things two or three different times. We have three different places to document height and weight, redundant and needless. We have flow sheets to document ADL's so I don't repeat the same things in the notes, again redundant and a waiste of time.