What do you say when you answer a call light at the nurses station?

[bbeg28]

My current facility uses vocera along with a call light system that rings to the desk. The secratary or anyone else around answers the call light at the desk. Currently the canned response is "I'll let your nurse/CNA know." or "I'll send your nurse/CNA a message." As I'm sure most of you are aware, call lights are a patient satisfaction issue. To improve our scores, I think a better canned response is needed to let the patient know someone is coming, but also that it may be a few minutes if the nurse or CNA is busy. What is your procedure/habit when answering the call light?

[Blue Roses]

We usually say brightly "Hi! How can we help you?" and then we'll say "Ok! we'll be right in!" or if it's a CNA answering and the patient needs a nurse they'll say "Ok! I'll go find your nurse and she'll/he'll be right in" and then the CNA comes and finds us so that the message actually gets through.

[BrandonLPN, LPN]

Our secretary(or whoever is there---the doc, the nurse) answers and asks "Can I help you?" PT states their need and whoever says "Ill send your nurse/aide" and then they let us know and we go see them.

I think I'd die from shock if our doctor answered a call light.

[ButtaflyRN]

At the desk you really cant say much more than "I'll let your nurse/aide know" you have no idea what either is doing at that moment. Most of the unit secretaries at my hospital will call the nurse or aide and let them know that someone needs something or text on our microcells, we have a few though that just turn the light on.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

cWhat is your procedure/habit when answering the call light?

Me: "Front desk . . . how may I help you?"

Patient: "I need help going to the bathroom."

Me: "We'll be in to help you shortly."

Anyone (nurse, tech, unit secretary, etc.) can help a patient to the bathroom, fetch some water, grab an extra pillow, turn out the lights, or do a number of things. I say "We'll be in to help you shortly" to purposely be vague and ambiguous because patients do not need unnecessary details when getting call lights answered. All they want is a prompt response.

[cassie77775]

We are required to answer it. If the secretary doesn't see the nurse, then she sends in an aide to find out what is needed. My hospital is very big on patient satisfaction and someone goes into that room whether they can meet the pt need or not. Even if its just to say "can I help you get in a different, more comfy position while we wait for your nurse to get your pain med".

[jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B]

Our call lights go off again in a couple of minutes if someone doesn't physically go into the room to shut it off after an initial response.

It is sometimes a good idea to have one aide who is the call bell answerer for the shift. They can go into the room and find out what it is that the patient needs, help them if they can or find the nurse if they can not.

Maybe it is just our facility, but call bells are answered in "How can I help you" and the patient just says "Yes" or some other vauge one word response, so you really don't know what the patient wants until you go into the room.

One of the "solutions" to this is hourly rounding with a "is there anything else I can help you with? I will be back in an hour" scripting.

And that in your hourly round, the nurse needs to be sure that the patient has everything they need, and are taken to the bathroom if need be. And to chart the same. Which depending on your day and patient acuity and how large one's assignment is makes for one busy shift.....

[RNewbie]

We answer call lights with"how can I help you?" Pt responds and we can hit an alert button on the call light system which goes to the nurse or cna's phone depending on what the pt needs. The light outside the pt's room also blinks a certain different color for nurse and cna. That way you can see down the hall whether pt needs nurse or cna. If no one responds in a certain amount of time the alert goes to the charge nurse's phone.

[chrisrn24]

They should say "I'll let the nurse/aide know. Someone should be by sometime soon."

But if you have to go down there then why not skip the middle man?

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

I think a simple dialog with the patient in the morning reminding them how the system works......let them know that the light will be answered and they will let the nurse know and nurse will respond etc......I Wish administration would realize the way to greater satisfaction scores is staffing.

[ToyaB]

One idea-- on top of telling a patient that you will inform their nurse/aide would be to have a way of following up with the patient in 5-15mins to update them if there nurse/aide has not been in to see them yet. From a patient's perspective, it is really irritating to have no expectation of time and then to not have anyone follow up to let you know you haven't been forgotten. You just end up hitting the bell again-- and getting the same response "that they'll inform you nurse/aide" is definitely going to result in some frustration and low customer service scores. I understand that we cannot be sure of the length of time, but keeping someone aware of what's going on, even if just to acknowledge their wait or to say I didn't forget you, can go a long way.

[monkeybug]

I think I'd die from shock if our doctor answered a call light.

I must have spent my life working with exceptional docs (well, I know I have) because I can think of several who answer call lights and phones on a regular basis. I've also seen a doc mop the operating room when we were desperate and understaffed.