IMPROVING PATIENT COMMUNICATION AND PAIN MANAGEMENT

Ruby Bejarano, BSN, RN & Ashley Benko, BSN, RN

University Medical Center of El Paso

Special Thanks To: Julie Gest, EdS, MS, RN; Cynthia Martinez, MSN, RN; Eric Johansen, ED Director, MSN, MBA, RN; and ED Staff

PROJECT DESCRIPTION NURSE AUDIT PATIENT SURVEY

q Our project consists of two important factors: Improving patient communication by enforcing 1. Are dates on the communication board 1. Did anyone update the dry erase board in
the use of white boards and overall pain assessment/reassessment. appropriate when receiving bedside report? your room? YES / NO
q It had come to our attention that this was a major area for improvement within our unit. YES / NO 2. Did the nurse introduce him/himself after
White boards are currently in every patient room, however, the majority of the time, they are 2. Did the handing off nurse have their name coming into the room? YES / NO
not appropriately updated. Although pain assessment/reassessment is necessary for on the board? YES / NO 3. Were you asked about your pain? YES / NO
effective pain management, it is not being done efficiently. We decided to combine the two 3. Did you have a dry erase marker available to 4. Did the nurse come back to check if the pain
elements with the implementation and compliance of the use of the patient communication update the communication board? YES / NO medication worked? YES / NO
boards.

EVIDENCE BASED PROJECT QUESTION NURSE AUDIT: PRE-EVALUATION PATIENT SURVEY: PRE-EVALUATION
Will the use of white boards and pain assessment/reassessment improve patient Pre-evaluaIon - Nurse Audit Pre-evaluaIon - PaIent Survey

communication and pain management?

120 120

100 100

IMPORTANCE OF EBP TO PATIENT CARE

80 80

60 60

The problem we will be addressing consists of hourly pain reassessment for each patient and 40 40

also making sure every patient is aware of who their providers are. Hourly pain reassessment
is important because it is a large aspect of patient care. Making sure that every patient is 20 20

aware of their providers is important because it makes them feel more comfortable during a 0 0
Date on Board Name on Board Marker Availability Updated White Board Nurse IntroducIon Pain Assessment Pain Reassessment

vulnerable situation. Yes No Yes No

DATA COLLECTION PROCESS NURSE AUDIT: POST-EVALUATION PATIENT SURVEY: POST-EVALUATION

q BEFORE: We will be obtaining data from an audit given to RNs regarding the use of 100
Post-evaluaIon - Nurse Audit
120
Post-evaluaIon - PaIent Survey

communication boards and pain management in the ED. A survey will be given to patients
regarding ED staff communication and pain management during their stay. 80
100

q IN-SERVICE: An in-service will be provided to all ED staff regarding importance of using 80

white boards to enhance communication with patients and improving pain management and 60

overall stay in the ED. Personal markers will be given to each RN and each white board will 60

be stocked with appropriate tools to ensure proper use of equipment. 40

40

q AFTER: We will be obtaining data from the nurse audits and patient surveys to compare
results to evaluate expected improvement of usage of white boards, communication with 20
20

patients, and pain management during their visit.

0 0
Date on Board Name on Board Marker Availability Updated White Board Nurse IntroducIon Pain Assessment Pain Reassessment

Yes No Yes No