Colonoscopy experience at a family practice residency: a comparison to gastroenterology and general surgery services

Colonoscopy training is receiving greater emphasis in family practice residencies. However, no standards have been established to measure the adequacy of this training. This study assessed the colonoscopy experience of family practice residents at Louisiana State University Medical Center at Shreveport (LSUMC-S).

We included all colonoscopies performed by the family practice service between August 1992 and December 1994 and matched them by gender and age with cases from the gastroenterology (GI) and general surgery (GS) services performed during the same time period. Family practice and GI were compared using 143 cases from each service; 166 cases were used to compare family practice to GS.

The cecum was intubated in 87% of patients on all services. The average time to complete the procedure was 35 minutes by the family practice service, 44 minutes by GI, and 25 minutes by GS. No significant differences were found between family practice and GI in the number of patients with polyp, normal colon, or biopsy performed. In comparison to GS, there were significantly fewer patients on the family practice service with normal colon and more with multiple polyps and biopsy performed. Significantly more cancers were found by the family practice service than by either GI or GS. There were no complications reported for any of the services. Results compared favorably with data in the current literature.

The colonoscopy experience available to family practice residents at LSUMC-S is acceptable within the parameters studied.