Print This Issue | 
Share this Page |
Eisenhower Medical Center: From Pen and Paper toComputerized Anesthesia Documentation By Christopher Cantilena, MD Chairman of Surgery Eisenhower Medical Center Rancho Mirage, Calif.  Banishing Ballpoints About a year ago, leaders at Eisenhower Medical Center decided that clinicians would no longer use pens, but instead would rely on computers to document clinical care in the surgical suite. I like technology, but I'd always had a certain affinity for pens, and I was used to grabbing a trusted ballpoint to jot down my notes while delivering anesthesia care in the operating room. After using the system, I've come to a quick conclusion. Computerized documentation improves anesthesia care and efficiency in the OR. A look at how I delivered care with a pen compared to using an electronic health record (EHR) illustrates why I've become an advocate for paperless medicine. Completing Cumbersome Paper Chores A typical workflow during my pen and paper days:  I reviewed the paper charts to get up to speed on each patient. Sometimes the notes in thecharts were incomplete or difficult to read. In the OR, I monitored the field, blood loss and changing levels of surgical stimulation. At thesame time, I anticipated the next steps in the procedure and documented care in the paper chart. Sometimes, when patients experienced problems, I had to delay putting pen to paper tomake a chart notation. With the delay, sometimes I would question whether or not I was recalling all of the details. When there were difficult clinical situations during surgery, I relied on memory and experienceto deliver best practice care to my patients. Creating Computerized Efficiency Shortly after the McKesson Anesthesia Care™ solution was implemented in June 2009, our anesthesiologists disposed of our pens. Now, anesthesia care is delivered with the assistance of a touch screen computer, not a ballpoint. And life has changed considerably — for the better. Streamlined Access to Information: Instead of pulling paper charts, now I access patient information from any Internet-connected computer — even from the comfort of my own den. I access the patient schedule as well as the patient's medical, anesthetic and surgical history via McKesson's physician portal. Online Support for Best Practices: The IT system promotes patient safety by providing prophylactic antibiotic alerts, drug allergy contraindications and cross-checking for adverse drug events. With the data we're collecting, eventually we'll be able to identify best practices, standardize procedures, reduce costs and capture lost revenue. Documentation at the Point of Care: The electronic solution enables me to document each phase of care at the point of care. I now can suspend care in the operating room and then move into the PACU to continue documenting on the case. I can't close the case until care is completely documented, which helps improve billing, making it possible for us to achieve optimal reimbursement. Improved OR Efficiency and Services: With online access to patient and practice information, anesthesiologists can have a positive impact on case turnover time, post-acute care unit recovery time and the scheduling of add-on cases. The surgical suite is an important component of any hospital's success. According to the American Hospital Association, 70% of all patients are admitted to hospitals via the OR. Because the anesthesia IT solution is providing efficiencies that make it possible to optimize OR suite scheduling, it has helped improve our overall surgical services and revenue. In addition, this efficient level of service from anesthesiologists reinforces the surgeon's decision to operate at this hospital, instead of scheduling operations at alternate facilities. Christopher Cantilena, MD, is a practicing anesthesiologist and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Eisenhower Medical Center, Rancho Mirage, Calif. He attended Northwestern University Medical School, and after graduating in 1988, he undertook a surgical internship and anesthesia residency at the Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth, Va. He is presently pursuing a Master of Medical Management degree through the University of Southern California — Marshall School of Business.
 |
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
       |
||
  
|
||
