The 25 questions address charting, prescriptions, lab and results management, decision support, health record management, and clinical tasking and messaging.
You may not be able to answer all of the questions for each category, however, based on the experiences you have had with an EHR system, attempt to answer questions in each category. Note: YES and NO answers are not acceptable; you should answer the questions in full sentences; remember, this is an APA paper.
This assignment is not meant to be one in which you simply list the components of the EHR system you are analyzing. You should be able to look at a component and describe how the system you are analyzing either provides that component, some portion of that component, or fails to provide it. Failure to include this information will result in a low grade for the assignment.
To add to your analysis, you should discuss how the system either contributes or fails to contribute, to optimal outcomes for the patient population being served in relation to each component.
25 Questions to be addressed:
Charting
1 Can the system accommodate (and potentially improve) my workflow?
2 Does the system offer a variety of data entry options, e.g., dictation, voice recognition, structured notes, etc.?
3 Can I make subsequent edits and addendums to clinical documentation?
4 Does the system alert me about unfinished portions of the clinical documentation and can I bypass it if necessary?
5 Can I access other such clinical information as previous labs, progress notes, etc. from a patient’s “electronic chart” while charting?
6 Does the system allow me to multi-task, e.g., create task, order lab, etc. while charting?
7 Does the system allow me to forward patient information to staff, other physicians, etc. via e-mail, electronic faxing, messaging, etc.?
8 Does the system ensure that only authorized clinicians can sign clinical documentation?
Prescriptions
9 Can I look up medication information and is this information valuable?
10 How extensive (and how sensitive) is the system’s interactions checking capability, e.g., drug-drug, drug-allergy, drug-food?
11 How accurate is the system in identifying drug-condition warnings, e.g., pregnancy?
Lab and Results Management
12 Can I complete a lab order within a few clicks?
13 Can I pull up and review lab results within a few clicks?
14 Can the system receive lab results electronically from laboratories, hospitals, etc. in my local market?
15 Does the system notify me of abnormal lab results and provide normal ranges?
16 Can the system show me trending of results over time?
Decision Support
17 Does the system alert me when patient data indicates intervention is recommended?
18 Can I access medical literature, clinical guidelines, etc.?
Health Record Management
19 Can I look up a patient by a number of different criteria, e.g., name, MRN, SSN, etc.?
20 Does the system provide a summary view of a patient’s health status?
21 Does the system handle other such clinical documents as x-rays, reports, etc.?
22 Can I organize patient information within the system in a similar way to my paper charts?
Clinical Tasking & Messaging
23 Can I access and manage various tasks, e.g., review labs, etc. within a few clicks?
24 Does system alert me of overdue tasks and urgent lab results?
25 How disruptive are the alerts, are they customizable and can they be overridden?
