Optimizing ward rounds: systematic review and meta-analysis of interventions to enhance patient safety (9 April 2025)

Summary

Poor quality ward rounds contribute to a large proportion of patient complications, delayed discharge, and increased hospital cost. This systematic review investigated all interventions aiming to improve patient and process-based outcomes in ward rounds.

The review included 84 studies, from 18 countries, in 23 specialties, involving 43 570 patients. It found that checklist interventions significantly reduced ICU length of stay, improved overall documentation, and did not increase ward round duration. Structure interventions did not increase the time spent per patient or impact 30-day readmission rates or patient length of stay.