Multidisciplinary Bedside Rounding

Multidisciplinary Bedside Rounding – Full-Length Video

This educational video demonstrates how to perform multidisciplinary bedside rounds and some of the common pitfalls with implementation.

Introduction: Multidisciplinary Bedside Rounding

Traditional rounding styles often times leave out key members of the healthcare team: the patient and their care partners.

This project refocuses attention from papers and computers towards those that need our help during a vulnerable time.

Pre-Round Huddle

Organization and prioritization of the multidisciplinary team’s morning is crucial for patient care and effective discharge planning.

Contacting Nurse Before Rounding on Mutual Patient

Before arriving to a regionalized unit, alert the primary nurse for the first patient planned to be seen so they will have a chance to complete their current task and join the team for rounds at the bedside.

Effective Multidisciplinary Bedside Rounding

Focusing rounds around the patient and their care partners involves a multidisciplinary presence including the medical team, primary nurse, and pharmacist. The entire team is introduced to emphasize functioning as one cohesive unit. The primary communicator sits at eye-level with the patient and the plan for the day is actively discussed in detail, involving input from the patient and their primary nurse.

Ineffective Rounds: Discussion Too Brief

It can be tempting to only give a brief update to patients and not discuss specific details thus hindering the medical decision making process. This is ineffective as the team often has to re-discuss plans later and may miss key information.

Ineffective Rounds: Too Much Use of Medical Jargon

Using medical terminology is encouraged as this helps further medical decision making. However, it is important to explain to patients what is being discussed so that they may actively participate in their own medical care.

Ineffective Rounds: Unnecessary Full Team Rounding

In a case where there are no active medical problems that benefit from a multidisciplinary presentation, we encourage attending physicians to meet with patients separately from the full team to more effectively use everyone’s time.

Bedside Rounding with Sensitive Medical Information

Often times there are sensitive topics that need to be discussed, but the appropriateness of where and with whom to discuss such information is not straightforward. In such cases, providers should communicate clearly with patients privately to know what and with whom they are comfortable discussing certain topics with.