Bedside rounds in the hospital environment from the perspective of multiprofessional health teams

To analyze the configuration of power relations among the multiprofessional team in the bedside round process in the hospital.

Qualitative research with data analyzed through discourse analysis, based on Michel Foucault's theoretical framework. From September to December 2022, we conducted interviews and field observations with the multiprofessional team at a hospital in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, as well as qualitative, semi-structured interviews with 37 professionals.

The participants pointed out that the experiences of the professionals involved in bedside rounds depend on how the physician conducts the process, and the physician-centered process makes it difficult for other professionals in the team to participate.

The way hospitals organize bedside rounds does not promote knowledge articulation for their professionals. It hinders the circulation of power and harms interdisciplinary work in a process that maintains the physician as the main actor in clinical decisions.