Use of the QR Reader to Provide Real-Time Evaluation of Residents' Skills Following Surgical Procedures

Abstract

Background A portable electronic method of providing instructional feedback and recording an evaluation of resident competency immediately following surgical procedures has not previously been documented in obstetrics and gynecology. Objective This report presents a unique electronic format that documents resident competency and encourages verbal communication between faculty and residents immediately following operative procedures. Methods The Microsoft Tag system and SurveyMonkey platform were linked by a 2-D QR code using Microsoft QR code generator. Each resident was given a unique code (TAG) embedded onto an ID card. An evaluation form was attached to each resident's file in SurveyMonkey. Postoperatively, supervising faculty scanned the resident's TAG with a smartphone and completed the brief evaluation using the phone's screen. The evaluation was reviewed with the resident and automatically submitted to the resident's educational file. Results The evaluation system was quickly accepted by residents and faculty. Of 43 residents and faculty in the study, 38 (88%) responded to a survey 8 weeks after institution of the electronic evaluation system. Thirty (79%) of the 38 indicated it was superior to the previously used handwritten format. The electronic system demonstrated improved utilization compared with paper evaluations, with a mean of 23 electronic evaluations submitted per resident during a 6-month period versus 14 paper assessments per resident during an earlier period of 6 months. Conclusions This streamlined portable electronic evaluation is an effective tool for direct, formative feedback for residents, and it creates a longitudinal record of resident progress. Satisfaction with, and use of, this evaluation system was high.

Uses of Quick Response Codes in Healthcare Education: A Scoping Review

“…The key benefits of using QR codes for healthcare education lie in the ability to provide timely, multimodal information in a cost-effective manner. Several studies demonstrated an improvement in engagement from students or faculty [19,20,22,23,26,[39][40][41][42], which may be due to ease of use, availability and immediacy compared to other available methods of accessing information. Additional benefits lie in adaptability, simplicity of creation and potential environmental benefits of QR codes.…”

“…Four articles explore how QR codes can be used to improve trainee experience, either through improvement in feedback methods [39][40][41] or by recording procedures undertaken in a log book [42].…”

myTIPreport and Training for Independent Practice: A Tool for Real-Time Workplace Feedback for Milestones and Procedural Skills

“…5,[16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] Real-time feedback via web-based platforms and mobile applications has been reported to facilitate feedback by properly and efficiently relaying constructive criticism to residents, 17,20 maintaining longitudinal records of resident progress based on milestones, 20 improving clinical practices such as handoffs or sign-outs, 20 tracking procedural skills checklists, and tracking other quality metrics. 17,[20][21][22][23] The results of this study showed myTIPreport achieved some of these goals by facilitating and storing workplace feedback on milestones and procedural skills. A systematic review reported that few published studies have examined feedback receptivity and feedback provision.…”

Uses of Quick Response Codes in Healthcare Education: A Scoping Review

“…Four articles explore how QR codes can be used to improve trainee experience, either through improvement in feedback methods (32)(33)(34) or by recording procedures undertaken in a log book (35).…”

“…Sobhani et al (32) and Reynolds et al (34) both investigated how feedback could be received through assigning an individual QR code to each student or resident that could then be scanned by a faculty member. In both cases, it was demonstrated that faculty found the QR-linked feedback form superior to the paper alternative.…”