Typing skills of physicians in training

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Healthcare Professional Training
• Clinical Documentation

Background:

• Electronic health records (EHRs) are increasingly utilized in US hospitals.
• Resident proficiency in EHR documentation speed and accuracy is understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the typing skills of medical residents.
• To identify potential disparities in typing speed among different resident groups.

Main Methods:

• Typing speed (net words per minute) was measured in 104 residents at New York Methodist Hospital.
• Residents were categorized by typing speed (very slow to fast) and medical graduate origin.

Main Results:

• Median typing speed was 30.4 net WPM, with 60% of residents demonstrating slow or very slow skills.
• Non-American international medical graduates had significantly slower typing speeds (25.9 net WPM) compared to American (35.9 net WPM) and American international graduates (33.5 net WPM).

Conclusions:

• A majority of residents exhibit inadequate typing proficiency for efficient EHR use.
• Deficient typing skills may negatively impact resident education and patient care delivery.