Patients’ views of the ward round: a survey

AIMS AND METHOD As part of the total experience of hospital admission, it is important to ensure that ward rounds are efficient and acceptable to patients. Self-completed questionnaires relating to the conduct of the ward round were given to a consecutive series of 100 in-patients admitted to four psychiatric wards serving one half of the population of Cornwall. RESULTS Twenty-two patients disliked being seen in their own bedrooms, 54 disliked large ward rounds and three-quarters liked having an exact appointment time. There was a group of patients who felt particularly anxious before or during the ward round. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS It is important to reconsider the conduct of the ward round, and in so doing to balance the preferences of the patient with the needs of the multidisciplinary team.