Remote monitoring and supervision of urology residents utilizing integrated endourology suites-a prospective study of patients' opinions.
OBJECTIVE
To report on integrated endourology suites (IES), remote monitoring and supervision (RMS) of urology residents and to evaluate patients' opinions, acceptance, and satisfaction level with IES and RMS.


METHODS
Patients undergoing flexible cystoscopy in the IES with RMS were surveyed using a questionnaire. All procedures were performed by junior urology residents (UR-1 level) using RMS. Patients were studied using a nine-question survey to evaluate their comfort level, acceptance, and level of satisfaction with RMS. Six questions used a scale of 1 to 10 (1=strongly disagree; 10=strongly agree), and the remaining three questions solicited a "yes" or "no" response.


RESULTS
100 patients were studied (59% Caucasians, 40% African Americans, and 1% Hispanic). Median age was 63 years. The highest level of education was middle school in 2% of patients, high school in 55%, undergraduate in 33%, and postgraduate in 10%. Patients scored a mean of 9.50/10 (highly satisfactory) regarding their comfort with RMS; 96% scored ≥ 7, 4% scored 5 to 6, and none scored <5. Patients were satisfied having a urology resident perform the procedure (9.48/10), other residents and medical students watch the procedure (9.41/10), a video camera in the room (9.40/10), and two-way sound communication (9.40/10). None perceived compromise to their privacy or quality of care.


CONCLUSIONS
RMS in IES is highly acceptable to patients undergoing endoscopic procedures. RMS has the potential to positively impact residency training, efficiency, regulatory compliance, safety, and productivity.
Department of Urology, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30033, USA.
Stephen M
SM
Anderson
Brian B
BB
Kapp
Jordan M
JM
Angell
Thura T
TT
Abd
Nancy J
NJ
Thompson
Chad W M
CW
Ritenour
Muta M
MM
Issa
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013685:Telecommunications; D014481:United States; D014570:Urologic Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014572:Urology / Q000193:education*