Effect of Communication Boards on Facilitating Patient-Nurse Interaction and Anxiety in Mechanically Ventilated Patients: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

Authors
Amirhossein Khakbaz
Ali Akbari
Nazanin Fard Moghadam
Sajad Vosoughi
Nahid Naseri
10.61186/ibj.25th-11th-IACRTIMSS
Abstract
Introduction: Communication difficulties in mechanically ventilated patients pose a significant challenge that can harm their recovery process and quality of life. Implementing appropriate solutions can lead to enhanced patient-nurse interaction and psychological well-being. Consequently, the present study aimed to conduct a systematic review to determine the effect of communication boards on facilitating patient-nurse interaction and anxiety in mechanically ventilated patients.

Search Strategy: This systematic review was conducted in 2024 by analyzing articles from foreign databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, Web of Science, Medline, and Google Scholar. Keywords such as “communication board”, “nurse-patient interaction”, “nurse”, “patient”, “hospital anxiety”, “ventilator”, and “randomized controlled trial” were searched in English. The search was performed from the beginning of February 2024. Initially, 552 studies were identified in the identification stage. Then, 162 articles were excluded in the screening stage, and 55 remained after the eligibility assessment. After further review, 11 articles that met the inclusion criteria were included in the review. The PRISMA checklist was used to report the findings better. Also, all short articles and review articles for which full versions were unavailable for any reason were excluded from the analysis.

Results: Among the 11 studies reviewed, the findings consistently indicated a positive impact of communication boards on improving nurse-patient interaction and patient anxiety. Using communication boards led to a significant improvement in nurse-patient interaction in mechanically ventilated patients. This included an increase in the frequency and quality of interactions, as well as better mutual understanding between patients and nurses. The use of communication boards was also associated with a significant reduction in anxiety levels in mechanically ventilated patients. Patients who used communication boards felt more in control and were able to express their needs and concerns, which in turn helped to reduce their anxiety.

Conclusion and Discussion: Our study shows that communication boards improve intensive care unit (ICU) patients' perceptions of care. Nurse managers can implement this by creating standardized boards, ensuring ICU availability and training staff to improve patient communication and care.



Keywords
Hospitals
Intensive care unit
patients
Nurses