The principles and practice of morning report

Morning report is a traditional ritual on academic medical services. At morning report, house staff and faculty review case management and the principles of clinical medicine. To understand better the role and function of morning report and to assess its value for supervision, teaching, and evaluation of clinical knowledge and skills, a survey of academic departments of medicine was conducted. A questionnaire was sent to 124 departments of medicine represented by the membership of the Association of Professors of Medicine. The response rate was 94%. Morning report was important for teaching and was also useful for evaluation of resident performance and quality of clinical care. Some potential problems were identified when the conference is used for peer review and performance evaluation. Morning report stands out as the only large, formal conference generally used for the evaluation of case management and the performance of medical residents. As such, its limitations must be recognized. Recommendations are made for taking advantage of the unique educational opportunities available at morning report.