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OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT04497922

Virtual White Boards for Patient Satisfaction

Communication with patients on their clinical status is important in delivering care in the emergency department. During times of high volume or complex patients, there may be lapses in communicating with patients about their hospital course or plans of action. These miscommunications may be enhanced during the current COVID-19 pandemic as there is minimized in-person interaction with patients in order to conserve personal protective equipment and decrease the risk of disease transmission. This study utilizes a virtual white board to deliver updates to patients about the status of their emergency department stay.

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Key information

Conditions

Satisfaction, Patient Behavior COVID-19 Coronaviridae Infections Coronavirus Infections Covid19 Disease Attributes Emergencies Health Behavior Infections Information Disclosure Lung Diseases Nidovirales Infections Pathologic Processes Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Patient Satisfaction Personal Satisfaction Pneumonia Pneumonia, Viral RNA Virus Infections Respiratory Tract Diseases Respiratory Tract Infections Satisfaction Treatment Adherence and Compliance Virus Diseases

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Brigham and Women's Hospital

Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, United States

About this study

The ultimate goal of this study is to understand the effect of delivering timely information about a patient's emergency department course of their satisfaction surrounding the emergency department stay. The experience of patients in the emergency department has been significantly altered by the COVID-19 pandemic due to decreased in-person encounters, and the use of PPE. Delivering information about their clinical course and expected hospital course is more difficult now given the emphasis on less in-person interaction. In response, the investigators have deployed in collaboration with e-ink, a virtual e-paper white board that can be remotely edited to help display pertinent hospital course information to patients in the emergency department. The investigators will conduct a randomized controlled trial to understand the effect of deploying these white boards on patient satisfaction in the emergency department.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Patients in emergency department at Brigham and Women's Hospital
  • Triaged to designated emergency department pods outfitted with virtual white board
  • Expected emergency department stay of at least four hours
  • Able to speak and read english
  • Not primary psychiatric complaint

Exclusion criteria

  • Medically ill or otherwise deemed unable to participate by the study PI and/or treating clinical team.
  • Patients admitted to an inpatient bed but boarding in the emergency department over 10 hours.
  • Previously participated in the study.
  • Has COVID-19 risk flag or confirmed COVID-19 in electronic health record

Treatment and study plan

e-ink screen

Device

A virtual display screen developed by e-ink that displays patient status, basic demographics, care team information, pending tests and anticipated disposition

Treatment as Usual

Behavioral

Treatment as usual in the emergency department with communication of testing results, imaging and disposition by the primary clinical emergency department team.

Primary outcomes

  1. emergency department satisfaction: likert scale

    Time frame: 30 minutes after disposition decision for patient

    Satisfaction of overall emergency department stay measured by a 1-5 likert scale, hospital developed question on satisfaction (how satisfied were you with your emergency department stay today?)- higher score is better

  2. Quality of emergency department stay: likert scale

    Time frame: 30 minutes after disposition decision for patient

    Quality of information conveyed to participant (rated on 5 point likert scale on questions about quality of waiting time for test results, staff concern, perceived teamwork in the hospital)

Secondary outcomes

  1. Preference for virtual white board

    Time frame: 30 minutes after disposition decision for patient

    Question on preference for virtual white board compared to a standard emergency department room without a white board (1-4 likert scale, with 4 being strongly prefer white board room)

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Brigham and Women's Hospital

Other

Collaborators

  • E-ink corporation

Registry information

Official study title

Improving Patient Satisfaction Through Information Display Using Virtual White Boards

Important dates

Study start
2021
Primary completion
2021
Study completion
2021
First posted
Aug 4, 2020
Registry last updated
Jul 17, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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