The Use of High Definition Video Modules for Delivery of Informed Consent and Wound Care Education in the Mohs Surgery Unit

TECHNOLOGY IN DERMATOLOGY AND DERMATOLOGIC SURGERY

The Use of High Definition Video Modules for Delivery of Informed Consent and Wound Care Education in the Mohs Surgery Unit

Mar
2008
Vol. 27. No. 1
Arianne Chavez-Frazier, MD | Michael Migden, MD | Tri Nguyen, MD

The use of video in the informed consent process has been well documented in the
literature to improve patient satisfaction, understanding, comprehension, and to decrease
anxiety. At the MD Anderson Mohs Surgery Unit, we use high-definition (HD) audiovisual
(AV) modules to assist with the delivery of informed consent and to educate patients on the
subject of postoperative wound care. The purpose of this work was to develop HD-AV
media to inform patients of the risks, benefits, and alternatives of Mohs surgery before they
are asked to sign the consent form and to educate patients on basic wound care after Mohs
Surgery. The use of a HD virtual surgeon and nurse in the videos educates the patient,
allowing the surgeon and nursing staff to attend to other patients within the Mohs Surgery
Unit. Using HD digital recording equipment, we captured real-time HD-AV media to explain
the risks, alternatives, and benefits of Mohs surgery (surgeon explanation) and to give
detailed instructions for postoperative wound care (nurse explanation). Once captured, HD
modules were created and stored on a central University of Texas–MD Anderson Cancer
Center server in the Texas Medical Center approximately 1 mile from the Mohs Surgery
Unit. The full-screen HD modules are accessed on demand at the point of need with the use
of standard institutional computers within any of the Mohs’s center’s examination/surgical
suites. An early evaluation of this quality improvement initiative was performed to measure
patient satisfaction, efficiency, and efficacy of the videos followed by physician/nurse
discussion compared with physician/nurse discussion alone. Early evaluation of HD-AV
modules used for the delivery of informed consent and postoperative wound care in the MD
Anderson Mohs surgery Unit revealed that patient satisfaction was maintained and that this
medium was preferred by patients in the video group over physician/nurse discussion
alone. The HD modules allowed increased efficiency and patient comprehension, which
improved patient education in the Mohs Surgery Unit.
Semin Cutan Med Surg 27:89-93 © 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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