Patient-Care-Related Telephone Communication Between General Surgery Residents and Attending Surgeons

摘要

Miscommunication between residents and attending physicians is a major contributor to medical mishaps, and can result in delays in medical treatment or delivery of inappropriate patient care. Although there are many different forms of communication, telephone communication is frequently used to manage various types of patient-care issues. Unlike face-to-face communication, resident-to-attending telephone communication is not typically spontaneous, as the resident must first decide why -a call is or is not warranted, and then whether or not to call an attending. A resident's decision to call the attending is very important to the patient, the resident, and the attending surgeon. Residents who refrain from calling an attending surgeon about serious patient-care problems can jeopardize patients' care. On the other hand, residents who "overcalT their attend-ings about minor patient-care issues risk not being taken seriously when a true patient emergency arises. Despite its importance, the factors involved with telephone communication between residents and attending physicians are poorly understood.