Psychiatric Inpatient Bedside Handoff Implementation of a Quality Improvement Project and Nurses' Responses

Psychiatric inpatient unit nurses implemented a quality improvement project to explore strategies to enhance the effectiveness of the change of shift communication between nurses and patients and obtain goals of care information. Three nurses championed a 6-month project to implement more efficient, patient-centered communication; influence patient outcomes; and assess nurses' perceptions about patient satisfaction. A survey established the level of nurse satisfaction regarding the length of time spent at change of shift obtaining patient information. Following a literature review, nurses used a standardized approach for their change of shift report, which they called patient bedside handoff. Nurses reported increased satisfaction with the length of time spent with the patient bedside handoff from a pre-implementation average score of 5.7 (somewhat satisfied) to a post-implementation score of 8.3 (very satisfied). This nurse-led quality improvement project helped illuminate perceived barriers to the implementation of patient bedside handoff and the changes in nurses' perceptions over time.