Intentional Rounding on a General Surgical Unit

Patient safety for the hospitalized patient is a coneern. Hospitalized patients are affected by pain management issues, a risk of falling, and the potential to develop pressure ulcers. Research has shown that by reducing these events, patients report increased satisfaction which ultimately increases hospital reimbursements, not to mention cost avoidance. Intentional rounding is a nursing best practice designed to anticipate patient care needs and improve patient safety. A project to implement intentional rounding on a general surgical unit provided a leadership opportunity for a Masters of Nursing student to plan, implement, and evaluate a nursing unit quality initiative using Watson\u27s theory of human caring and the concept of intentionality as a framework for providing care in the intentional rounding process. The effects of intentional rounding demonstrated no significant change in patient fall rates, pain management, or pressure ulcers, but rather raised the awareness of the nurses on the unit to address the four essential components of refresh, relieve, reposition and restroom. As a result the nurses felt they experienced fewer patient call lights. After critically analyzing the practice of intentional rounding, more work needs to be done to have the practice embedded into the unit culture