Nurse liaison: the bridge between the perioperative department and patient accompaniers

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.