Flying Solo: Effectiveness of Attendingless Family-Centered Rounds on Improving Resident Autonomy

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education requires that residents demonstrate increasing autonomy during their training. Although residents report a better educational environment with hospitalists present during family-centered rounds (FCRs), there is a concern that attending presence may reduce resident autonomy. We aim to determine the effect of FCRs without an attending during rounds on senior residents’ sense of autonomy. METHODS We conducted a multicenter, retrospective, preintervention-postintervention study at 5 children’s hospitals to evaluate the effect of rounding without an attending on senior residents’ self-efficacy, using a questionnaire developed by using Bandura’s principles of self-efficacy and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education milestones. Questions addressed skills of diagnosis and/or management, communication, teaching, and team management. We compared preintervention and postintervention results using paired t tests and Wilcoxon rank tests. One-way analysis of variance tests were used to compare means among >2 groups. RESULTS 116 (82% response rate) of 142 eligible senior residents completed the questionnaire, which yielded a high reliability (α = 0.80) with a 1-factor score. The average composite score of self-efficacy significantly improved after intervention compared with the preintervention score (66.71 ± 6.95 vs 60.91 ± 6.82; P < .001). Additional analyses revealed meaningful improvement of each individual item postintervention. The highest gain was reported in directing bedside teaching (71.8% vs 42.5%; P < .001) and answering learner questions on rounds (70.7% vs 47.0%; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS Conducting FCRs without an attending increases resident reported self-efficacy regarding core elements of patient care and team leadership. In future studies, researchers should examine the impact of rounding without the attending on other stakeholders, such as students, interns, patients and/or families.