Delivery and Measurement of High-Value Care in Standardized Patient Encounters

Residencies have incorporated high-value care (HVC) training to contain health care expenditures. Assessment methods of HVC curricula are limited.

In our clinical skills laboratory, we evaluated the effectiveness of HVC curricula using standardized patients (SPs) to determine if there is a correlation with performance in counseling, history and physical, HVC knowledge, and demographics.

Through ambulatory cases, SPs evaluated postgraduate year 2 (PGY-2) residents using checklists to determine if they obtained the chief complaint, medical and social history, focused physical examination, and conveyed information regarding patient management. Investigators scored knowledge-based questions on the need for imaging in low back pain, annual stress testing in coronary artery disease, and chest x-ray for gastroesophageal reflux disease. Univariate analysis was used to calculate percentage distribution of residents' ordering of inappropriate tests.

All 56 PGY-2 residents participated in the study and completed at least 2 of 3 HVC cases. Analysis showed that 48% (27 of 56) ordered at least 1 inappropriate test. Residents who ordered unnecessary testing had similar performance in history and physical as well as knowledge of HVC. Inappropriate ordering was significantly associated with poorer performance in counseling (mean percentage counseling score of 68% versus 56% for those who ordered inappropriately, P < .001) and communication skills (mean percentage communication score of 74% versus 71% for those who ordered inappropriately, P < .003). There were no patterns for ordering by demographics.

Our evaluation of residents during SP encounters found a correlation between the use of inappropriate testing and lower counseling and communication skills.