Bedside interprofessional rounds: perceptions of benefits and barriers by internal medicine nursing staff, attending physicians, and housestaff physicians

Background: Interprofessional collaboration improves the quality of care, but integration into workflow is challenging. Although a shared conceptualization regarding bedside interprofessional rounds may enhance implementation, little work has investigated providers' perceptions of this activity.

Objective: To evaluate the perceptions of nurses, attending physicians, and housestaff physicians regarding the benefits/barriers to bedside interprofessional rounds.

Design and participants: Observational, cross-sectional survey of hospital-based medicine nurses, attending physicians, and housestaff physicians. Descriptive, nonparametric Wilcoxon rank sum and nonparametric correlation were used.

Main measures: Bedside interprofessional rounds were defined as "encounters including 2 physicians plus a nurse or other care provider discussing the case at the patient's bedside." Eighteen items related to "benefits" and 21 items related to "barriers" associated with bedside interprofessional rounds.

Results: Of 171 surveys sent, 149 were completed (87%). Highest-ranked benefits were related to communication/coordination, including "improves communication between nurses-physicians;" lowest-ranked benefits were related to efficiency, process, and outcomes, including "decreases length-of-stay" and "improves timeliness of consultations." Nurses reported most favorable ratings for all items (P < 0.05). Rank order for 3 provider groups showed high correlation (r = 0.92, P < 0.001). Highest-ranked barriers were related to time, including "nursing staff have limited time;" lowest-ranked barriers were related to provider- and patient-related factors, including "patient lack of comfort." Rank order of barriers among all groups showed moderate correlation (r = 0.62-0.82).

Conclusions: Although nurses perceived greater benefit for bedside interprofessional rounds than physicians, all providers perceived coordination/teamwork benefits higher than outcomes. To the extent the results are generalizable, these findings lay the foundation for facilitating meaningful patient-centered interprofessional collaboration.