Development of an interinstitutional resident record completion policy

Seven hospitals in the Dayton, Ohio area collaborated in the development of generic record completion policies to assist with orientation of medical school residents. A uniform delinquent record policy was also developed, which defined the steps that would be taken if records remained incomplete. The interinstitutional policies resulted in a more cooperative atmosphere among residents, the medical school, and the hospitals, which contributed to improved quality of documentation and a decrease in the number of delinquent records by as much as 70 percent.