ONE-ON-ONE MENTOR-RESIDENT ROTATION FOR IMPROVING CONTINUITY OF CARE IN A SURGICAL TRAINING-PROGRAM

The modern resident team, staffed by multiple attendings, often makes sacrifices on continuity of care due to scheduling conflicts. We inves tigated a one-on-one mentor-resident rotation where all clinical activ ities were synchronized to produce near-perfect continuity of care, an d we compared the objective and subjective outcome measures to those o f control rotations of the same resident during the same year. The res ults showed that continuity of care close to 100% was possible in such rotations, but work hours were increased by 25%. Also, the number of patients seen was decreased by over 50%. The rotation was well-receive d by both mentors and residents. Continuity of care per se can be impr oved by this rotation. However, theoretical disadvantages, mainly narr ow training due to exposure to only one mentor and fewer patients, mak e it unsuitable for extended use. (C) 1997 Academic Press.