ROUNDS: a customizable HELP results review program for hospital staff physicians.

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Clinical Information Systems
• Medical Software Development

Background:

• Physicians require timely access to clinical data for effective patient care.
• Current methods of accessing patient data (phone, print, existing systems) are often time-consuming.
• Hospital information systems can be cumbersome for rapid data retrieval.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce the M.D. Rounds Report (ROUNDS) program, designed for rapid access to critical patient data.
• To enhance the HELP System at Rex Hospital with an automated clinical data retrieval tool.
• To evaluate the implementation and impact of the ROUNDS program on physician workflow.

Main Methods:

• Development of an online program, ROUNDS, as an adjunct to the HELP System.
• Enabling automatic retrieval of patient information including allergies, medications, lab results, radiology reports, and therapist notes.
• Allowing access for qualified users without extensive menu navigation.

Main Results:

• The ROUNDS program facilitates automated, rapid access to comprehensive patient data.
• Qualified users can retrieve essential clinical information efficiently.
• The system reduces the time and effort physicians spend on data acquisition.

Conclusions:

• The M.D. Rounds Report program significantly improves the accessibility of clinical data for physicians.
• Automated data retrieval enhances the efficiency of patient care delivery.
• The program's success informs future development of physician subsystems within hospital information systems.