title: [Task shifting and quality of care in practice; physician assistants compared with anaesthesiology residents in the preoperative anaesthesiology outpatient clinic].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the clinical competencies of second-year anaesthesiology residents and physician assistants (PA) in the preoperative anaesthesiology outpatient clinic.
  
  
  METHODS
  Comparative qualitative observational study.
  
  
  METHODS
  The two study groups were compared using 5 test stations representing 5 different cases of varying degrees of complexity with standardized patients. For each case, the patients and two anaesthesiologists assessed the results of the PAs and the residents using a quantitative scoring system for 4 clinical skills relevant to the preoperative anaesthesiology outpatient clinic. These skills were history-taking, physical examination, communication, and reporting. At each station, a score was calculated for each skill. The groups' scores were subsequently compared.
  
  
  RESULTS
  9 PAs and 11 residents carried out the station tests. There were no significant differences between the two groups of participants.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this study in a preoperative anaesthesiology outpatient clinic no difference in clinical competencies was found between PAs and second-year anaesthesiology residents.
authors: Diakonessenhuis, afd. Anesthesiologie, Utrecht, the Netherlands. rtromp@diakhuis.nl
authors: Reinier C
authors: RC
authors: Tromp Meesters
authors: Aggie M
authors: AM
authors: Hettinga
authors: Geert
authors: G
authors: van den Brink
authors: Cornelis T
authors: CT
authors: Postma
authors: Gertjan
authors: G
authors: Scheffer
mesh_terms: D000776:Anesthesiology / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards*; D002983:Clinical Competence; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D009426:Netherlands; D016544:Patient Simulation; D010823:Physician Assistants / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards; D011300:Preoperative Care / Q000592:standards; D011787:Quality of Health Care