REPORT OF AUDIT IN HOUSE OFFICER WARD ROUNDS

Abstract

Ward rounds are thought to be the pinnacle to the training of House Officers and according to literature is referred to as “walking tightrope” which aids in the processes of appropriate clinical decision making, information exchange, and demonstration of communication skills. Objective The objective of this audit is to determine the quality of ward rounds conducted by Hous Officers in terms of frequency of rounds, eligibility of handwriting, and accordance to Specialist plans. Methodology The wards are randomly sampled from a list of 6 Medical wards, 3 Surgical wards, and 4 Obstetric and Gynaecology wards. A total of 2 Medical wards, 2 Surgical wards, 1 Obstetric ward, and 1 Gynaecology ward are included in this study. Then a random sampling of 60 case notes are obtained from the discharges in a week from 8/4/2024 – 12/4/2024 as the sample for the audit. Results Results show that for Medical department, 100% achieve 2-times ward rounds per day. For Surgical department, 1(5%) has reported no ward round conducted in a day, with 4 (20%) with one ward round per day, and 8(40%) with 2 ward rounds per day, and 7(35%) with 3 ward rounds per day. For Obstetrics and Gynaecology department, 20 (100%) achieve 2 ward rounds per day involving the House officers. Discussion There is a mediocre participation of House Officers in the ward rounds with 36.67% recorded no participation of House Officer ward rounds with Specialists. Using a specific tool, Consultants realise that they could focus their teaching on a particular problem or issue suiting to the level of the learners or junior doctors. Conclusion In conclusion, this brief audit conducted in Hospital Pulau Pinang managed to show the gravity of the House Officer situation in Malaysia, where there had been a massive reduction in number of House Officers in Malaysia, and specifically in Penang too, which aggravated the reduction in the ability of House Officers to follow ward rounds, which are educational.