Consistent Rounding Leads to Increased HCAHPS Scores

HCAHPS – who knew that six letters could have such an impact on an organization? Low HCAHPS scores can result in a  loss of revenue, an unfavorable reputation in the community, public reporting of unsatisfactory scores, and potential downsizing of programs and/or employees.  Are your patient satisfaction scores lower than you expected?  It’s time to take a look at the consistency of your nurse leader rounding.

The Rounding/Scores Relationship

The practice of nurse rounding can be traced back in history to the 1860s with Florence Nightingale.  Since then, it has been shown again and again that enhancing the relationship between the bedside nurse and patient is key to increasing patient satisfaction. The use of nurse rounding as a customer service approach is a sustainable process  that can be utilized to enhance the nurse-patient relationship.  This helps to positively change behaviors and improve overall patient perception of care.¹

How to Achieve Consistent Rounding

Numerous studies have shown the benefits of improved patient satisfaction with consistent rounding.  Those studies have also shown a direct correlation with more rounding activity associated with improvement of positive scores, and less rounding activity associated with lower HCAHPS scores.² Because of the effect on reimbursement scores, most hospitals have taken the necessary steps to implement rounding programs.  However, some fall short of expectations due to lack of adoption and/or completion.  If you are experiencing this, try to focus first on your outliers.  You are only as strong as your weakest link!  It takes some digging in, but your rounding solution should provide you the visibility you need to analyze data and make changes in real time.

First, look at:

Unit Performance
Review the performance of your units.  What is their rounding completion rate?  Industry best practices state that you need an 80% or higher completion rate to make an impact on your HCAHPS scores.  In addition to completion, look to see if the patient feedback correlates with the domain questions and if the domain questions correlate to your HCAHPS reports. 

When You Round
For rounding to be successful, time has to be built into the day to complete them.  Set aside meeting free time on the calendar that is dedicated to completing rounds.  The timing of your rounds can also have an impact on your scores.  Vary the time of day as to when nurse leader rounding is conducted.  This will give you a better overall picture to the patient experience.

Weekend Rounding
If your rounding isn’t being done consistently on weekends, this will impact your overall completion, which in turn will impact your scores.  Patient experience is 24/7.  Ensure your weekend staff has the training and the right tools to get the job done!

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CLARIFIRE HEALTH®

Technology has provided advances in the healthcare industry to help organizations work faster, easier, and smarter to achieve quality and patient satisfaction goals.  CLARIFIRE HEALTH offers an easy-to-use mobile application that is as simple as Tap, Swipe, and Go.  Intuitive usability combined with a robust workflow engine capture metrics, preferences, and trends in real time. Paper processes are eliminated, issue escalation is automated, and solid reporting is available with just a few quick clicks.  Let us show you how to operationalize your rounding needs with CLARIFIRE HEALTH.

Sources:

1. https://corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1016&context=nursing_dnp
2. https://www.jopan.org/article/S1089-9472(17)30433-1/fulltext