At Lakeridge Health, we use the latest research and practices to provide patients with a high standard of care and meet their individual needs.
Research and experience tell us that effective communications and the partnership between the care team, patients and families has a positive and sometimes profound impact on patient experiences and leads to better health outcomes.
One of the ways that Lakeridge Health teams are using current evidence to deliver safe, high quality care is by becoming a “Best Practice Spotlight Organization” or “BPSO.” As part of BPSO, Lakeridge Health is focusing first on enhancing practices for dementia, depression, wound care, falls and other common health concerns of an aging population.
Another BPSO practice that will make a positive difference to patients and families is “Purposeful Rounding” or “4-P Rounding.”
Building on the excellent and compassionate care our teams provide every day, 4-P Rounding takes the partnership between health professionals, patients and families to a new level. 4-P Rounding increases communication and engagement with patients and families by supporting nurses and other team members to deliberately and proactively anticipate each person’s health care needs, in the moment.
So, once this is in place, if you or your loved one is admitted to hospital, the team will proactively and regularly ask about and assess your pain and your personal needs. They will re-position you if you need help with this and ensure you can reach the things around you that you need.
Through the rigorous process of 4-P Rounding, teams will continuously connect and partner with patients and their families to make sure their needs are being met at all times. 4-P Rounding has been shown to not only increase patients’ comfort, safety and satisfaction, but also to decrease and prevent falls, pressure injuries or ulcers.
The practice of 4-P Rounding is at the core of providing the highest quality of care at the bedside, based on best practice guidelines from the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario.
The 4-P Rounding approach gives seniors, like Marlene Bowen, a better experience, supporting them to communicate their needs and understand their care and treatment options.
Marlene has been in and out of the hospital over the last year.
The Clarington resident, mother and grandmother was admitted to Bowmanville Hospital eight months ago for massive pain in her bowel area. She needed surgery. Blockages in her small intestine led to an Ileostomy – a type of surgery that allows waste to be removed from the body when the colon is not working properly.
She was discharged to her home for a week, but returned to the hospital just before Christmas for another operation to remove a second blockage.
“The nursing team here is so compassionate,” said Marlene. “I’m still on a fluid diet and so they are always checking on me. I know the nursing team so well, and they know me. It makes me feel like I’m part of their family.”
Currently, 4-P Rounding is the standard on the majority of our inpatient medicine units across Lakeridge Health. And in just one year, patient safety has improved particularly related to falls causing harm: We have achieved a significant 32 per cent reduction in Durham Region.
Marlene says she is grateful for the quality of care she is receiving at Lakeridge Health. She hopes to attend her granddaughter’s grade eight graduation in June and plans to travel with her husband again.
For more on our BPSO journey visit the Lakeridge Health website.
— Leslie Motz is vice-president of clinical services and chief nursing executive at Lakeridge Health.
