First-Year Medical Residents Spend Little Time on Patient Care

That said, care of the patient is still dependent on actually being present with patients, talking to them about their symptoms and medical histories, and examining them carefully, all of which cannot be done electronically, Dr. Moriates adds.

“More time spent on computers can potentially lead to a lack of building trusting relationships and connecting with patients on a humanistic level,” Dr. Moriates says. “Most physicians went in to medicine to treat patients, not enter orders and notes in computers, so we need to ensure we strike an adequate balance of spending direct time with patients and performing the necessary tasks in electronic health records to provide for appropriate care.”

References

1. Chaiyachati KH, Shea JA, Asch DA, et al. Assessment of inpatient time allocation among first-year internal medicine residents using time-motion observations. JAMA Intern Med. 2019 Apr 15. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.0095. [Epub ahead of print]
2. Moriates C, Hudson FP. A modern snapshot of the dailywWork of medical interns—the burden of indirect patient care. JAMA Intern Med. 2019 Apr 15. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.0092. [Epub ahead of print]