Effect of SMS Ward Round Notifications on Inpatient Experience in Acute Medical Settings: Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: Ward rounds are an essential component of inpatient care. Patient participation in rounds is increasingly encouraged, despite the occasional complicated circumstances, especially in acute care settings.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of real-time ward round notifications using SMS text messaging on the satisfaction of inpatients in an acute medical ward.

Methods: Since January 2021, a service implementing real-time ward round notifications via text messaging (WR-SMS) has been operational at a tertiary-care medical center in Korea. To assess its impact, we conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients admitted to the acute medical unit who participated in a patient experience survey. Patient satisfaction was compared between patients admitted in 2020 (pre-WR-SMS group) and 2021 (post-WR-SMS group).

Results: From January 2020 to December 2021, a total of 100 patients were enrolled (53 patients in the pre-WR-SMS group and 47 patients in the post-WR-SMS group). Compared with the pre-WR-SMS group, the post-WR-SMS group showed significantly greater satisfaction about being informed about round schedules (mean 3.43, SD 0.910 vs mean 3.89, SD 0.375; P<.001) and felt more emotionally supported during admission (mean 3.49, SD 0.800 vs mean 3.87, SD 0.397; P<.001). Regarding other questionnaire scores, the post-WR-SMS group showed an overall, although statistically insignificant, improvement compared with the pre-WR-SMS group.

Conclusions: Real-time round notifications using a user-friendly SMS may improve inpatient satisfaction effectively.