Abstract
Introduction The impact of whiteboard use in labor rooms has not previously been studied. This quality improvement study aimed to evaluate patient knowledge of their delivering physician’s name and the change in patient satisfaction after the implementation of a whiteboard in labor rooms. Methods A multidisciplinary team designed a dry-erase whiteboard prompting care providers to record their names, roles and patient care information. A questionnaire was administered to patients before and after the whiteboard implementation. Patients who had a planned cesarean or vaginal birth within 1 h of admission were excluded. Categorical variables were compared using Chi square and Fisher’s exact tests. A multivariable logistic regression was performed to control for confounders. Results 191 patients completed the questionnaires. Although patients were not randomized, the pre-and post-intervention groups were similar. Post-intervention, we found a significant increase in recalling the delivery resident’s name [21/101 (20.8%) vs. 33/90 (36.7%), p = 0.016] and a non-significant increase in recalling the name of the attending and nurse [19/101 (18.8%) vs. 23/90 (25.6%), p = 0.296; 46/101 (45.5%) vs. 53/90 (58.9%), p = 0.082]. Post-intervention, patient satisfaction with care was significantly higher [83/101 (82.2%) vs. 83/89 (93.3%), p = 0.028]. Knowledge of the delivery resident’s name was associated with higher patient satisfaction [115/137 (84%) vs. 51/53 (96%), p = 0.03] and attendance of the postpartum care visit [50.4% (69/137) vs. 64.8% (35/54), p = 0.049]. Discussion The use of a well-designed whiteboard increases laboring patients’ knowledge of their delivery physician’s name and may improve patient satisfaction with care on Labor and Delivery.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
ACOG Committee Opinion No. 490: Partnering with patients to improve safety. (2011). Obstetrics and Gynecology, 117(5), 1247–1249.
Arora, V., Gangireddy, S., Mehrotra, A., Ginde, R., Tormey, M., & Meltzer, D. (2009). Ability of hospitalized patients to identify their in-hospital physicians. Archives of Internal Medicine, 169, 199–201.
Boulding, W., Glickman, S. W., Manary, M. P., Schulman, K. A., & Staelin, R. (2011). Relationship between patient satisfaction with inpatient care and hospital readmission within 30 days. The American Journal of Managed Care, 17(1), 41–48.
Doyle, C., Lennox, L., & Bell, D. (2013). A systematic review of evidence on the links between patient experience and clinical safety and effectiveness. British Medical Journal Open, 3(1), 1–18.
Francis, J. J., Pankratz, V. S., & Huddleston, J. M. (2001). Patient satisfaction associated with correct identification of physician’s photographs. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 76(6), 604–608.
Glickman, S. W., Boulding, W., Manary, M., Staelin, R., Roe, M. T., Wolosin, R. J., … Schulman, K. A. (2010). Patient satisfaction and its relationship with clinical quality and inpatient mortality in acute myocardial infarction. Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, 3(2), 188–195.
Henry, J. D., & Rendell, P. G. (2007). A review of the impact of pregnancy on memory function. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 29(8), 793–803.
Institute for Healthcare Improvement. The IHI Triple Aim. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ihi.org/Engage/Initiatives/TripleAim/Pages/default.aspx.
Jha, A. K., Orav, E. J., Zheng, J., & Epstein, A. M. (2008). Patients’ perception of hospital care in the United States. The New England Journal of Medicine, 359(18), 1921–1931.
Makaryus, A. N., & Friedman, E. A. (2005). Does your patient know your name? An approach to enhancing patients’ awareness of their caretaker’s name. Journal for Healthcare Quality: Official Publication of the National Association for Healthcare Quality, 27(4), 53–56.
Mickes, L., Wixted, J. T., Shapiro, A., & Scarff, J. M. (2009). The effects of pregnancy on memory: Recall is worse but recognition is not. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 31(6), 754–761.
O’Leary, K. J., Kulkarni, N., Landler, M. P., Jeon, J., Hahn, K. J., Englert, K. M., & Williams, M. V. (2010). Hospitalized patients’ understanding of their plan of care. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 85(1), 47–52.
Santen, S. A., Rotter, T. S., & Hemphill, R. R. (2008). Patients do not know the level of training of their doctors because doctors do not tell them. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 23(5), 607–610.
Sehgal, N. L., Green, A., Vidyarthi, A. R., Blegen, M. A., & Wachter, R. M. (2010). Patient whiteboards as a communication tool in the hospital setting: A survey of practices and recommendations. Journal of Hospital Medicine, 5(4), 234–239.
Singh, S., Fletcher, K. E., Pandl, G. J., Schapira, M. M., Nattinger, A. B., Biblo, L. A., & Whittle, J. (2011). It’s the writing on the wall: Whiteboards improve inpatient satisfaction with provider communication. American Journal of Medical Quality: The Official Journal of the American College of Medical Quality, 26(2), 127–131.
Tan, M., Evans, K. H., Braddock, C. H. 3rd, & Shieh, L. (2013). Patient whiteboards to improve patient-centred care in the hospital. Postgraduate Medical Journal, 89(1056), 604–609.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Dr. Cynthia Chazotte, Dr. Enid Rivera-Chiauzzi, Zeidy Flores, Colleen Lee, Tanya Moore-Murray, Andrea McGowan and Ketty Floyd for their support.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pimentel, V.M., Sun, M., Bernstein, P.S. et al. Whiteboard Use in Labor and Delivery: A Tool to Improve Patient Knowledge of the Name of the Delivery Provider and Satisfaction with Care. Matern Child Health J 22, 565–570 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-017-2425-6
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-017-2425-6