Medical Residents are Key in Improving Health Care Quality
Latest research demonstrates opportunity to leverage new docs

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. - Dec. 1, 2009 - Medical residents can and should play an integral part of national quality improvement initiatives according to a new national industry study. According to the December issue of Academic Medicine, a national initiative using graduate medical education showed a number of patient benefits to including residents in quality improvement efforts.

Started in 2007 by the Alliance of Independent and Academic Medical Centers, the initiative - Improving Patient Care through Graduate Medical Education, lists the benefits of giving residents a more integral role including:

• Hospitals are better able to meet quality and safety priorities,
• The quality of residency programs is enhanced,
• The quality of residency programs is enhanced,
• Residents can be more visible advocates in patient care.

"While the original focus of the initiative had been improving patient care, it soon became clear that it was also improving the quality of the residents' educational experiences," said Carl Patow, MD, executive director for the HealthPartners Institute for Medical Education. "This is an important learning which we can leverage as we work to further enhance our residents training programs."

As the magazine guest editor and AIAMC Board of Directors President, Patow further highlights the value new physicians can have on health care, particularly given the debate in Washington about health care reform. "The quality of patient care, along with access and affordability, are keys to transforming our system. We now know residents have a large role to play in this important work."

For more information on the Journal of Academic Medicine, visit its Web site here.

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About HealthPartners IME

HealthPartners Institute for Medical Education (IME) is a non-profit corporation that oversees all the health professional educational activities of the HealthPartners health system. Created in 1996, IME provides learning opportunities that contribute to the development of health professionals at every level. The Institute sponsors five of its own residency programs, has one joint program and 11 affiliated programs with the University of Minnesota. For more information, visit http://ime.healthpartners.com/.

Contact: 952-883-5252