Intentional rounding, a system championed by a staff nurse at Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton, is being advocated this month by the Prime Minister.

The system is similar to the old regular rounds which used to be commonplace in hospitals and has dramatically improved patient care since it was introduced at Musgrove Park.

Musgrove Park Hospital nurse Jackee Phillips led a pilot in adopting a simple checklist approach to care in her medical assessment unit back in October 2010.

The checklist covers six key areas – pain control, hydration and nutrition, continence, skin integrity, risk of falling, and whether the nurse can do anything else for the patient.

Each patient was checked on an hourly basis.

The results showed that call bell use went down significantly and there was better detection of pressure sores.

The most recent figures for the unit show a tenfold increase in the detection of patients coming in to hospital with pressure sores, a 34 per cent reduction in inpatient falls, a 78 per cent reduction in call bell usage and a 73 per cent reduction in complaints.

The scheme has been rolled out to one third of units at the hospital and has proved a hit with patients, who feel cared for, said a hospital spokesman.