Introduction: To assess the quality of resident dictations for transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT). One indicator of surgical quality is the completeness of the operative report. Surprisingly, there is a paucity of standardized operative templates for TURBT and little formalized instruction for learners. The quality of TURBT dictations was assessed and areas of improvement were determined after implementation of a 10 item TURBT checklist.
Materials and methods: A retrospective review of the last 50 TURBT operative reports dictated by residents was performed. A 'TURBT checklist' was used assessing 10 key factors in documentation. A formal training session regarding TURBT dictations was given with TURBT checklists handed out to each trainee. Fifty TURBT dictations were subsequently analyzed.
Results: TURBT dictations improved across the board following checklist implementation. Total number of checklist items dictated increased to 7.0 from 2.6 prior (p < 0.05). When stratified by resident experience, TURBT dictations improved across different resident years (p < 0.05). Junior resident dictations statistically improved in every checklist item (p < 0.05). Senior resident dictations improved in almost every category but only two reached statistical significance. A regression model demonstrated checklist implantation to be a significant predictor of improvement in mean number of checklist items dictated independent of PGY level.
Conclusions: Our study demonstrates that prior to implementation, TURBT operative dictations performed by residents lacked many of the critical components required for a quality TURBT. However, once properly instructed, a relatively simple 'checklist' can be easily implemented and serve as a teaching tool for residents in training to ensure critical procedural elements are documented.