Impact of Electronic Medical Record Training on Pediatric Residents' Learning Outcomes: A Simulation-Based Study

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Health Informatics
• Pediatrics

Background:

• Electronic Medical Records (EMR) are integral to modern healthcare.
• Proficiency in EMR systems is crucial for effective clinical decision-making.
• Pediatric residents require specialized training to optimize EMR use in patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of structured electronic medical record (EMR) training on pediatric residents' proficiency.
• To evaluate the effect of EMR training on residents' clinical decision-making skills in simulated scenarios.
• To compare EMR proficiency and decision-making between residents receiving EMR training and a control group.

Main Methods:

• A prospective, non-blinded randomized controlled trial was conducted.
• Pediatric residents participated in baseline and follow-up simulated sepsis and respiratory distress scenarios.
• The intervention group received EMR training post-simulation, while the control group did not.

Main Results:

• The intervention group showed significant improvements in EMR proficiency scores for both sepsis and respiratory simulations.
• EMR training led to a 2.9-point increase in sepsis EMR scores and a 3-point increase in respiratory EMR scores.
• While not statistically significant, simulation performance showed non-significant improvements in both groups for both cases.

Conclusions:

• Simulation-based EMR training effectively enhances EMR data gathering skills in pediatric residents.
• EMR training shows potential for improving clinical decision-making in simulated healthcare environments.
• Findings are limited by the single-center nature and local EMR specificity, impacting generalizability.