Grand rounds revisited: results of a survey of U.S. Departments of Medicine

Abstract

Medical grand rounds is a time-honored weekly conference at United States teaching hospitals. We surveyed 122 departments of medicine to test the hypothesis that grand rounds may have changed with the changing training environment. Our goal was to gain a new perspective on the way physicians learn clinical medicine and maintain their fund of information. A questionnaire was designed to assess several aspects of grand rounds, including format, objectives, popularity, and changes over time. The questionnaire was directed to department heads of 122 U.S. medical schools. Seventy-five percent of respondents were department chairs; the remainder were chief residents and other faculty. Survey response rate was 96%. According to respondents, the major objective of grand rounds was to provide "updates in diagnosis and treatment." Case presentations were regularly included in about one third of departments; patients were rarely present for examination or interview. The popularity of grand rounds was thought to have decreased. These data support the impression that medical grand rounds is still considered important in most academic medical centers. Suggestions are made for increasing the clinical relevance of the conference. New techniques for presenting clinical material are reviewed, and an argument is made for returning to a basic strategy of "solving the patient's problem."