Dr. Kathleen Myers
Scribes Program, NW Acute Care Specialists
Roundtable, Greywood
4:30 p.m., March 29, Monday
RSVP REQUIRED by 5 p.m., Thursday March 25

In September 2005, Legacy Emergency Department Physicians initiated the Scribe Program for students pursuing a career in medicine. Our program is modeled on the Dallas, Texas Scribe program and we currently work at all five Legacy Hospital Emergency Departments in the southern Washington and Oregon region: Salmon Creek, Mt. Hood, Emanuel, Good Samaritan and Meridian Park.

What We Do

Scribes provide real-time charting in emergency department (ED) settings. The scribe follows the ED physician into every patient room, records the patient's history and the reason for coming to the ED, and transcribes the physical exam as the doctor dictates. The scribe helps the nursing staff and physician keep track of the patient's status in the ED. The scribe records the results of diagnostic tests, phone conversations with consulting physicians, and patient reexaminations. The scribe transcribes the patient's diagnosis, as well as the plan for follow-up care.

Benefits to Doctors

• Improves patient care - the physician can maintain eye contact with the patient rather than documenting while the patient talks
• Increases efficiency of the physician - many physicians spend up to 50% of their time documenting
• Makes the physician record a more complete document

  Benefits of Being a Scribe

• Learn the responsibilities of being a physician
• Craft an individual style by observing and learning from different doctors
• Learn what specialty of medicine interests them
• Become fluent in the language of medicine
• Become accustomed to the HCFA standards of medical coding and documentation
• Prepare for medical school interviews
• Increase time management skills
• Improve note taking

Dr. Myers will be in Greywood to talk with you about this program.