There is now no question that as a clinician we can see and care for an extra three to five patients per shift without cutting clinical corners. At the same time the focus of our thought is on the patient more consistently throughout the shift. The removal of the dread of incomplete charts at the end of a difficult shift is such a relief, and this alone will add years of life to my career. The pleasant surprise has been the relationship with the young and energetic scribes who remind us many times of the joy of learning and doing our work.
Dr. Alan Bock
San Antonio Community Hospital
Upland, CA
The experience gained through the scribe program was essential to my preparation to medical school. Working around emergency physicians and immersing myself in the mindset of a doctor greatly helped me see the big picture as I studied for basic science courses during my first two years of medical school. I felt that I had a huge advantage when it came time to learn about history taking and physical exam. While many of my classmates struggled to smoothly conduct patient interviews, my interviews were much more natural.
Sanmme Moschettieri
Cottage Hospital
Santa Barbara, CA
We are all board certified emergency physicians who work shifts just like you. The use of scribes has vastly improved the quality of our jobs. Our own experience with scribes has been so successful that EMSS was started as a result of our conviction that no emergency physician should have to work without one.
A scribe is generally a college or premed student who has shown proficiency in school work and an interest in medicine. The Emergency Medicine Scribe works side by side with an EM doctor as a personal documentation assistant. The scribe accompanies the doctor into the patient room, taking notes to document completely the physician-patient encounter. Additionally, the scribe assists the physician with other tasks that will make the patient encounter more efficient, such as documenting results of labs, x-rays, and consultations. In the process, the scribe gains a working knowledge of medical terminology, treatments, and pathophysiology.
