Understanding and Addressing Barriers to Effective Procedure Logging Among Residents

The significance of precise and prompt documentation of procedures within medical residency programs is important for medical residents due to its direct influence on the evaluation of competency, appraisal of the residency program, and the provision of high-quality healthcare. The motivation of the research study is driven by the concerns expressed by medical professionals in the residency program. The research in this honors thesis explored complex difficulties encountered by residents at medical hospitals in relation to the documentation of medical procedures. The study comprised of three parts: an in-depth literature survey specifically with respect to the duties and lives of Residents and survey of previously conducted structured interviews of Residents at hospitals. The study revealed that the current logging processes at hospitals, have become cumbersome, inefficient, time-intensive, and reduced motivation to log the procedures correctly and in a timely manner. Frequently, the procedures are logged from memory and therefore accuracy of the data is unknown. This study did not find evidence that the data logged was used for continuous improvement of processes and the improvement of the curriculum for Residents. The thesis has made a detailed system requirement based on the understanding of the subject and a detailed analysis of current methods and technologies used. Given the permeance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and software such as ChatGPT, a literature survey of use of AI/ChatGPT was also undertaken. AI technology may provide an opportunity to streamline data logging and analysis. As the technology progresses and legal and ethical issues are resolved, many AI technologies and recommendations from this paper could become part of ongoing Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) projects at Arizona State University (ASU).