An Objective Way to Evaluate Continuity of Care in Residency

Authors

  • Brendan Chad Kushneriuk University of Saskatchewan, College of Medicine
  • Jason Hosain College of Family Physicians of Canada Canadian Medical Association Saskatchewan Medical Association

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32396/usurj.v2i1.12

Keywords:

continuity of patient care, family practice, medical education, physician-patient relations, internship and residency, primary health care

Abstract

Objective: To develop a tool to assess Canadian family medicine residents in regards to continuity of care (COC).

Design: Analysis of the first 100 patient visits of family medicine residents during their four-month block time in the second year of residency. Data was collected between the years of 2009 and 2012 and used to construct standardized curves for COC.

Setting: West Winds Primary Health Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Participants: 36 second-year family medicine residents training at West Winds Primary Health Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Main outcome measures: The number of unique patients that a family medicine second-year resident encounters within the first 100 patient visits of family medicine block time.

Results: Family medicine residents demonstrate individual variation in the number of unique patients they encounter within one hundred patientvisits.

Conclusion: It is possible to develop a tool that can assess second-year family medicine residents in their ability to practise COC. This tool can be used to identify residents in difficulty, such that appropriate interventions can be made early on in their family medicine block time. Further research, involving residents from across Canada, is needed before this tool can be employed in a widespread manner.

Author Biographies

Brendan Chad Kushneriuk, University of Saskatchewan, College of Medicine

Education- M.D. University of Saskatchewan

(Med III at time of submission)

 

Jason Hosain, College of Family Physicians of Canada Canadian Medical Association Saskatchewan Medical Association

Assistant Professor, University of Saskatchewan - College of Medicine

Education - M.D. University of Saskatchewan; C.F.P.C.

Cover image by Stephanie Mah. Layout by Erin Holcomb.

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Published

2015-12-07

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2015): December 2015

Section

Articles

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