Nurse Liaison: The Bridge Between the Perioperative Department and Patient Accompaniers

Abstract

The role of the perioperative nurse liaison at Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Ein Kerem in Jerusalem, Israel, is to provide information and help patients' family members and others accompanying surgical patients cope with feelings of uncertainty, emotional stress, and fear. The nurse liaison is responsible for ongoing communication with patient accompaniers awaiting the conclusion of surgery and, in particular, for updating them on the surgery's progress. As part of a quality assurance project, the OR academic assistant, the OR nursing supervisor, and the coordinator of clinical quality and assurance in nursing conducted a quantitative descriptive survey to evaluate patient accompaniers' satisfaction with the updates provided by the nurse liaison throughout surgery and with the waiting room conditions. Results indicated that the nurse liaison makes a significant contribution to the welfare of patient accompaniers during surgery. In addition, results showed a need to improve the waiting room conditions to allow for more privacy.

Participation of family members and quality of patient care – the perspective of adult surgical patients

“…Communication between professionals and family members can be improved by developing the role of nurses (Lerman et al . , Herd & Rieben ) and by periodic updating of family members (Bailey et al . , Trimm & Sanford , Blum & Burns ).…”

“…In order for this to be achieved, professionals have to reserve enough time for the purpose. Communication between professionals and family members can be improved by developing the role of nurses (Lerman et al 2011, Herd & Rieben 2014 and by periodic updating of family members (Bailey et al 2005, Trimm & Sanford 2010, Blum & Burns 2013. However, hospital staff have reported lack of space and shortage of workforce as barriers to interaction with patients' family members.…”

Nurse liaison: a strategy for counter-referral

“…Compared to a conventional model, simulation results pointed to a reduction in costs by 89% for the group of patients of less than eighty years and with three or more morbidities (24) . In addition to acting as a connection between the hospital and PHC, the nurse liaison can contribute to other settings, such as discharge from ICU patients to hospital units, as well as the transmission of up-to-date information between nurse in the surgical center and family members (25)(26) , which may improve the articulation between the units of the same health institution, strengthen communication and the bond between professionals and family members.…”

Evaluating Enhancements to a Perioperative Nurse Liaison Program

“…The evaluation of several surgical nurse liaison programs highlights that sharing information with family members who are waiting reduces anxiety and increases family satisfaction 5‐10 . Stephens‐Woods 5 noted that the PNL may, if requested, accompany the physician who is speaking with family members about a procedure, diagnosis, or surgical outcome.…”

“…PNLs at Boston Children's Hospital inform the surgeon of any particular family concerns before the surgeon meets with the family for a consult 8 . When surgeons do not allow the PNL to reveal important surgical information, such as diagnoses, changes in the procedure, or unexpected news to the families, the lack of sharing key information can be a major frustration to both the nurse and family 9 …”