Pattern of discussion in traditional and novel ward-round procedures

A novel ward-round procedure was introduced on an acute psychiatric admissions ward. There was an equal balance in number of staff and patients attending the meetings simultaneously, and all team members participated in the interviewing and discussion. This was compared to the traditional type of ward-round procedure in which one patient attends at any given time, and the consultant is the exclusive interviewer and director of team discussion. The content of negotiation in the traditional ward round was compared to that in the novel style of meeting and it was found that the novel format produced a swing away from medical and diagnostic issues to domestic and social matters.