A novel use of the discrete templated notes within an electronic health record software to monitor resident supervision.
OBJECTIVE
Monitoring the supervision of residents can be a challenging task. We describe our experience with the implementation of a templated note system for documenting procedures with the aim of enabling automated, discrete, and standardized capture of documentation of supervision of residents performing floor-based procedures, with minimal extra effort from the residents.


METHODS
Procedural note templates were designed using the standard existing template within a commercial electronic health record software. Templates for common procedures were created such that residents could document every procedure performed outside of the formal procedural areas. Automated reports were generated and letters were sent to noncompliers.


RESULTS
A total of 27 045 inpatient non-formal procedural area procedures were recorded from August 2012 to June 2014. Compliance with NoteWriter template usage averaged 86% in the first year and increased to 94.6% in the second year ( P  = .0055).



Initially, only 12.5% of residents documented supervision of any form. By the end of the first year, this was above 80%, with the gains maintained into the second year and beyond. Direct supervision was documented to have occurred where required in 62.8% in the first year and increased to 99.8% in the second year ( P  = .0001) after the addition of hard stops. Notification of attendings prior to procedures was documented 100% of the time by September 2013. Letters sent to errant residents decreased from 3.6 to 0.83 per 100 residents per week.


CONCLUSIONS
The templated procedure note system with hard stops and integrated reporting can successfully be used to improve monitoring of resident supervision. This has potential impact on resident education and patient safety.
Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
Vin Shen
VS
Ban
Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.|Office of the Executive Vice President, Parkland Health and Hospital System, Dallas, Texas.
Christopher J
CJ
Madden
Department of Radiology and Division of Informatics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
Travis
T
Browning
Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and Parkland Health and Hospital System.
Ellen
E
O'Connell
Department of Otolaryngology and Graduate Medical Education, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
Bradley F
BF
Marple
Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.|Information Technology, Parkland Health and Hospital System, Dallas, Texas.
Brett
B
Moran
D004282:Documentation / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D057286:Electronic Health Records; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency / Q000458:organization & administration*; D012984:Software; D013781:Texas
electronic health record; graduate medical education; resident education; resident supervision; templated notes