“Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single Center

Objective: To identify the utilization of shared medical notes, referred to as “open notes,” and the experience of caregivers and cardiology providers during inpatient hospitalization for congenital heart disease. Study design: Single-center, cross-sectional, survey-based study utilizing convenience...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Megan Rodts, MD, Dana B. Gal, MD, Brittney K. Hills, MD, Elisa Marcuccio, MD, Colleen M. Pater, MD, MS, Samuel Hanke, MD, MBA, MS
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Journal of Pediatrics: Clinical Practice
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950541025000092
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850127786530832384
author Megan Rodts, MD
Dana B. Gal, MD
Brittney K. Hills, MD
Elisa Marcuccio, MD
Colleen M. Pater, MD, MS
Samuel Hanke, MD, MBA, MS
author_facet Megan Rodts, MD
Dana B. Gal, MD
Brittney K. Hills, MD
Elisa Marcuccio, MD
Colleen M. Pater, MD, MS
Samuel Hanke, MD, MBA, MS
author_sort Megan Rodts, MD
collection DOAJ
description Objective: To identify the utilization of shared medical notes, referred to as “open notes,” and the experience of caregivers and cardiology providers during inpatient hospitalization for congenital heart disease. Study design: Single-center, cross-sectional, survey-based study utilizing convenience sampling of patient caregivers on a pediatric acute care cardiology unit and corresponding cardiology providers. Surveys assessed demographic information, health literacy of caregivers, and experiences during inpatient hospitalization that relate to open note use. Descriptive statistics were performed. Results: Forty-five caregivers (47% of eligible) and 21 cardiology providers (100% of eligible) were enrolled. There were no demographic differences between caregivers, or their children, who were open notes vs nonopen notes users (P > .05). Most caregivers were aware that the notes were available (87%), yet fewer enrolled in the program to read them (71%). Most caregivers had positive experiences with the notes (85%), while cardiology providers' opinions were overall neutral or negative (65%). Cardiology providers’ suggestions for improvement of open notes were frequently infeasible based on regulations required by the 21st Century Cures Act. Conclusions: Open notes in inpatient subspecialty pediatrics yields a novel opportunity for caregivers to engage positively and actively with the care team. Cardiology providers may value how positively caregivers view open notes as a method of receiving medical information and interacting with the care team. Cardiology providers may also benefit from further education on the new legislation in the 21st Century Cures Act.
format Article
id doaj-art-ad27bfce82e3495c92b734bb3c9e0533
institution OA Journals
issn 2950-5410
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Journal of Pediatrics: Clinical Practice
spelling doaj-art-ad27bfce82e3495c92b734bb3c9e05332025-08-20T02:33:35ZengElsevierJournal of Pediatrics: Clinical Practice2950-54102025-06-011620014710.1016/j.jpedcp.2025.200147“Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single CenterMegan Rodts, MD0Dana B. Gal, MD1Brittney K. Hills, MD2Elisa Marcuccio, MD3Colleen M. Pater, MD, MS4Samuel Hanke, MD, MBA, MS5Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati, OH; Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH; Reprint requests: Megan Rodts, MD, 3333 Burnet Ave, MLC 2003, Cincinnati, OH 45229.University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA; Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CADepartment of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TXCincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati, OH; Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OHCincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati, OH; Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH; The James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence, Cincinnati, OHCincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati, OH; Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH; The James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence, Cincinnati, OHObjective: To identify the utilization of shared medical notes, referred to as “open notes,” and the experience of caregivers and cardiology providers during inpatient hospitalization for congenital heart disease. Study design: Single-center, cross-sectional, survey-based study utilizing convenience sampling of patient caregivers on a pediatric acute care cardiology unit and corresponding cardiology providers. Surveys assessed demographic information, health literacy of caregivers, and experiences during inpatient hospitalization that relate to open note use. Descriptive statistics were performed. Results: Forty-five caregivers (47% of eligible) and 21 cardiology providers (100% of eligible) were enrolled. There were no demographic differences between caregivers, or their children, who were open notes vs nonopen notes users (P > .05). Most caregivers were aware that the notes were available (87%), yet fewer enrolled in the program to read them (71%). Most caregivers had positive experiences with the notes (85%), while cardiology providers' opinions were overall neutral or negative (65%). Cardiology providers’ suggestions for improvement of open notes were frequently infeasible based on regulations required by the 21st Century Cures Act. Conclusions: Open notes in inpatient subspecialty pediatrics yields a novel opportunity for caregivers to engage positively and actively with the care team. Cardiology providers may value how positively caregivers view open notes as a method of receiving medical information and interacting with the care team. Cardiology providers may also benefit from further education on the new legislation in the 21st Century Cures Act.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950541025000092open notesshared notesinpatient cardiologytransparencyfamily-centered care
spellingShingle Megan Rodts, MD
Dana B. Gal, MD
Brittney K. Hills, MD
Elisa Marcuccio, MD
Colleen M. Pater, MD, MS
Samuel Hanke, MD, MBA, MS
“Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single Center
Journal of Pediatrics: Clinical Practice
open notes
shared notes
inpatient cardiology
transparency
family-centered care
title “Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single Center
title_full “Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single Center
title_fullStr “Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single Center
title_full_unstemmed “Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single Center
title_short “Open Notes” in Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology: Caregiver and Provider Experiences in a Single Center
title_sort open notes in pediatric acute care cardiology caregiver and provider experiences in a single center
topic open notes
shared notes
inpatient cardiology
transparency
family-centered care
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950541025000092
work_keys_str_mv AT meganrodtsmd opennotesinpediatricacutecarecardiologycaregiverandproviderexperiencesinasinglecenter
AT danabgalmd opennotesinpediatricacutecarecardiologycaregiverandproviderexperiencesinasinglecenter
AT brittneykhillsmd opennotesinpediatricacutecarecardiologycaregiverandproviderexperiencesinasinglecenter
AT elisamarcucciomd opennotesinpediatricacutecarecardiologycaregiverandproviderexperiencesinasinglecenter
AT colleenmpatermdms opennotesinpediatricacutecarecardiologycaregiverandproviderexperiencesinasinglecenter
AT samuelhankemdmbams opennotesinpediatricacutecarecardiologycaregiverandproviderexperiencesinasinglecenter