Leveraging EMR functionality to improve patient care.

Querying patient electronic medical records to improve patient care and process outcomes can seem overwhelming. Our quality improvement model is a simple, user-friendly approach to make quality improvement tasks less daunting. We have successfully used the quality improvement model, written meaningful reports, and given provider feedback that has led to measurable improvements in our clinical and operational performance.

Objective Structured Video Examinations (OSVEs) for geriatrics education.

The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) and the Wisconsin Geriatric Education Center (WGEC) are committed to developing educational materials for primary care physicians in training. In response to the opportunity created by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) competency mandate, an MCW-led interdisciplinary working group has developed competency-linked video-based assessment tools for use in primary care residency training programs. Modeled after the Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE), used as part of the medical licensing examination process, we created geriatric-focused Objective Structured Video Examinations (OSVEs) as a strategy to infuse geriatrics into residency training. Each OSVE tool contains a 1-3 minute video trigger that is associated with a series of multiple choice and/or constructed response questions (e.g., fill in the blank). These questions assess residents' understanding of video-demonstrated ACGME competencies including professionalism, systems-based practice, communication, and practice-based learning. An instructor's guide and scoring key are provided for each tool. Response to the OSVEs has been overwhelmingly enthusiastic including greater than 90% commitment by statewide faculty to use the tools in residency training.