Development and initiation of computer generated documentation for burn patient care

Burn care is costly, complex, and poorly reimbursed. Capturing evaluation and management codes is an essential step in obtaining reimbursement for services rendered. For surgeons used to billing on the basis of Current Procedural Terminology codes, this represents a significant paradigm shift. In an effort to document the care provided and increase compliance with billing standards, we created computerized history and physical examination notes and progress notes specifically for burn patients. Drop down menus are included to answer directed queries, which allows the majority of the documentation to be completed with a point and click of the mouse. The note is completed by the house staff except for the "assessment and plan," which are entered by the attending physician who reviews and then electronically signs the note. A log of electronically signed notes is generated weekly for billing purposes. The use of these computerized documents has been reviewed and approved by the coding and quality assurance specialists within our billing organization. We believe these tools maximize the efficiency of documenting burn patient care, while minimizing the effort necessary to comply with evaluation and management guidelines. The aim of this study was to test the new computerized method at our institution to see whether it would improve documentation for evaluation and management services provided to burn patients. The results prove that this new system accomplished the goal we had set.