Improving patient-centered communication while using an electronic health record: Report from a curriculum evaluation.

Introduction: Researchers and clinicians are concerned about the impact of electronic health record use and patient-centered communication. Training about patient-centered clinical communication skills with the electronic health record may help clinicians adapt and remain patient-centered.

Methods: We developed an interactive workshop eliciting challenges and opportunities of working with the electronic health record in clinical practice, introduction of specific patient-centered behaviors and mindful practice techniques, and video demonstrating contrasts in common behavior and "better practices." One hundred thirty-nine resident physicians and faculty supervisors in five residency training programs at the University of Rochester Medical Center participated in the workshops. Participants were asked to complete an 11-item survey of behaviors related to their use of the electronic health record prior to training and after attending training. We used paired t-tests to assess changes in self-reported behavior from pre-intervention to post-intervention.

Results: We trained 139 clinicians in the workshops; 110 participants completed the baseline assessment and 39 completed both the baseline and post-intervention assessment. Data from post-curriculum respondents found a statistically significant increase in "I told the patient when turning my attention from the patient to the computer," from 60% of the time prior to the training to 70% of the time after.

Discussion: Data from our program evaluation demonstrated improvement in one communication behavior. Sample size limited the detection of other changes; further research should investigate effective training techniques for patient-centered communication while using the electronic health record.