Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 21, 2026
A Novel Method for Involving Women of Color at High Risk for Preterm Birth in Research Priority Setting
Published on: January 12, 2018
Family-centered rounds in Pakistani pediatric intensive care settings: non-randomized pre- and post-study design
Laila Akbar Ladak1, Shahirose Sadrudin Premji, Muhammad Muneer Amanullah
1The Aga Khan University Hospital-Clinical Trials Unit, Karachi, Pakistan.
Insights
Family-centered rounds in Pakistan improved parental satisfaction and reduced patient length of stay. This approach enhances communication between families and healthcare teams without increasing round duration.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Healthcare
- Family-Centered Care
- Health Services Research
Background:
- Family involvement in bedside rounds is a strategy for family-centered care, aiming to improve information access and shared decision-making.
- Traditional bedside rounds in Pakistan exclude parents, despite their importance in child healthcare.
- Implementing family-centered care models in diverse cultural contexts requires careful evaluation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the impact of family-centered rounds on parental and healthcare professional satisfaction.
- To evaluate changes in patient length of stay and time utilization.
- To compare family-centered rounds with traditional practice rounds in a low-resource setting.
Main Methods:
- A non-randomized before-after study design was employed.
- The study was conducted in a private hospital in Karachi, Pakistan.
- Data were collected from 82 parents and 25 healthcare professionals using questionnaires and observational forms.
Main Results:
- Parents reported significantly higher satisfaction with family-centered rounds, particularly regarding teamwork, use of simple language, inclusion in discussions, and decision-making.
- Patient length of stay was significantly reduced with family-centered rounds.
- No significant differences were observed in healthcare professionals' satisfaction or the duration of rounds.
Conclusions:
- Parents showed a strong preference for family-centered rounds, indicating improved communication and involvement.
- Family-centered rounds facilitated direct communication with medical teams without extending round times.
- This model shows potential for improving healthcare quality, including reduced length of stay and prevention of critical incidents.
Background:
Involvement of family in bedside rounds is one strategy to implement family-centered care to help families get clear information about their child, and be actively involved in decision-making about care. However in developing countries such as Pakistan, daily bedside rounds include the physician, residents, medical students and a nurse/technician. Parents are not currently a part of these rounds.
Objective:
To assess whether family-centered rounds improve parents' and health care professionals' satisfaction, decrease patient length of stay, and improve time utilization when compared to traditional practice rounds in a population with a low literacy rate, socioeconomic status, and different cultural values and beliefs.
Design:
A non-randomized before-after study design.
Setting:
A private hospital in Karachi, Pakistan.
Participants:
A convenience sample of 82 parents, whose children were hospitalized for a minimum of 48h, and 25 health care professionals able to attend two consecutive rounds.
Methods:
During the before phase, traditional bedside rounds were practiced; and during after phase, family-centered rounds were practiced. Parents and health care professionals completed a questionnaire on the second day of rounds. An observational form facilitated data collection on length of stay and time utilization during.
Results:
Parents' ratings during the family-centered rounds were significantly higher for some parental satisfaction items: evidence of team work (p=0.007), use of simple language during the rounds (p=0.002), feeling of inclusion in discussion at rounds (p=0.03), decision making (p=0.01), and preference for family-centered rounds (p=<0.001). No significant differences were found in health care professionals' satisfaction between rounds. Patient length of stay was significantly reduced in the family-centered rounds group, while no significant difference was found in the duration of rounds. Family-centered rounds served as an opportunity for parents to correct/add to patient history or documentation.
Conclusion:
Parents were satisfied with both forms of rounds; however, they appeared to have a greater preference for family-centered rounds than health care professionals. Family-centered rounds were a resource for Pakistani parents, enabling direct communication with the medical team without impacting on the time required to complete rounds. Family-centered rounds may improve quality of care such as decreasing length of stay or preventing critical incidents.
Related Concept Videos
01:20Study Designs in Epidemiology
Observational studies are those where the researcher does not intervene but rather observes natural variations. They include cross-sectional, cohort, and case-control studies.
01:30Specialized Care Centers and Settings-II
Rural health centers are specialized care facilities in remote locations with very few medical personnel. The primary care providers who run the centers are mostly Registered Nurse Practitioners. Here, emergency treatment is provided to critically ill or injured patients before they are transferred to the closest hospital. Fortunately, due to advancement in technology, many rural healthcare facilities and professionals have easy access to diagnostic and treatment...
01:23Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast, controlled...
01:13Patient-centered Care