- EpiBots™
Complementing our major new release to the EpiTasking module for data quality monitoring in 2010, now there is a way to take
the headache out of data quality checking. Read more about EpiBots™ in the EpiSoft News.
- Managing patient flow
Now health care professionals in the Focus mental health community have access to a dashboard view of their current patients, pending appointments and
a summary view of the patient's health record, making navigation simpler and quicker for clinicians.
- eADMISSIONS
A leading private hospital is in stage 1 roll-out of the eADMISSIONS portal for patients to complete all their preadmission details online.
If you are a patient looking for the link to the eADMISSIONS website, click here.
Otherwise, click here to read more.
- Lab results integration
Using Healthlink secure messaging and HL7, EpiSoft is receiving a copy of laboratory results from a state pathology provider.
- More integration on the menu for Christmas
In our integration pipeline is import of data from a market leading endoscopic reporting system to support cancer surveillance.
- In the pipeline - drug randomisation and blinding
In line with the requirements of a new study into fistulising Crohn's disease, we will be introducing an upgrade to our
randomisation module that supports double-blind randomised cross-over drug trials.
- In the pipeline - clinical history capture at point of care
This module will enable capture of the patient's clinical history
on a mobile device such an iPAD at the time they attend hospital. Patients who are admitted direct to ward or through the emergency
department and who are capable of recording their detailed clinical history will be invited to do so online rather than completing paper medical record forms.
This will be converted to a permanent electronic health record for the patients to access and modify for future attendances to hospital.
- In the pipeline - image mark-up and annotation
As part of our next clinical trial release, we will be introducing diagrams that allow for online mark up and inclusion of any number of
annotations.
- Upgrade to clinical trial data quality monitoring module
This module introduced in late 2010 improved the existing task and patient reminder system in EpiSoft to support proactive management of data quality by
study monitors. Data quality tasks can be raised, actioned, reviewed and marked as complete by study monitors and site co-ordinators, enabling the real-time flow of tasking
between sites in a community. This is now in use.
- Visit and treatment cycle planner enhancements
Our popular visit cycle and treatment cycle planner modules generate a cycle of future appointment dates inclusive of patient reminders by SMS and requests for online completion of
data automatically. The treatment cycle planner was enhanced earlier in 2010 to incorporate the recording of drug doses in accordance with the standard treatment regimen.
- Medication management enhancements
Following requests from some of our doctor users and with input also from community pharmacist users, we released a major upgrade to our module for recording
and reviewing the patient's medication record during 2010. This module now forms part of a our clinical record solution (EpiBase).
- Upgrades to our secure record share approach
We previously had consent-based record share models operating in two of our communities among clinicians in four regions of NSW and Qld.
In these cases, the entire community acted as a virtual organisation with record share enabled based on a range of community-specified security controls.
The next step on our record sharing journey was the development of a generic and reusable method utilising the entire six-tier EpiSoft security framework.
This will allow separate organisations to share records with patient permission.
- Standardised allergy recording using SNOMED-CT
We have been evaluating SNOMED-CT coded allergy listing for the recording of patient allergies to drugs,
food and other substances. Useful metadata information about the SNOMED term is often embedded in the text which can slow performance of searching.
We have developed a user-friendly, ultra-fast search and selection method for allergy recording searching on any part of the allergy text using both the latest
and the well-established techniques for performance-enhancing the web (AJAX and JavaScript). This module now in active use in our eADMISSIONS system
for allergy recording by patients and we are monitoring its effectiveness and ease of integration to the hospital's EHR.
Click here to read more.
- Endoscopy assessment and management of patients with fistulising Crohn's Disease
Continuing our work on community-specific enhancements, we have developed a module for recording disease characteristics and extent
under endoscopic examination using standardised instruments with automated scoring.
We also implemented a module for the management of patients on biologics under PBS guidelines for fistulising Crohn's Disease.
- EpiSynch for Genie users
We have developed a small footprint client application for the capture of demographic data from the open record on a doctor's desktop and real-time
transfer to EpiSoft. Data in transit will be encrypted and transmitted over an encrypted channel. This will benefit clinicians using Genie for their day to day patient
management and EpiSoft for the management of patients with chronic conditions supported by EpiSoft. This module is in field trial in Adelaide.
- Views of EpiSoft based on country
During 2009, we introduced a module for the management of patients on biologic drugs under the NZ Pharmac national subsidy arrangements.
As part of this enhancement, we also developed a generic method for the display of certain patient demographics and care pathways based on the country of origin of the user.
This dynamically renders at the time the user logs in to EpiSoft. Click here to read more.
- B2B interface engine supporting real-time, standards-based integration
During 2009, we evaluated the Microsoft BizTalk interface engine to support our customers' integration requirements between EpiSoft and other health sector applications.
While we have used secure Web Services for integration, we have regularly had the need to support complex data transformations from systems that do not support industry standards for messaging including
purpose-built MS Access research databases. Initial tests of the MS BizTalk platform involved data mapping and transformation of demographic and clinical data from historical datasets into the EpiSoft data structures.
These tests suggested that MS BizTalk will deliver significant time savings for future interface development among our clinical communities.
BizTalk is now part of our cloud-based production platform. We now use BizTalk for HL7 laboratory messaging and for endoscopy reporting integration.
- Online eligibility, risk stratification and randomisation of clinical trials participants
Our clinical trial features introduced during 2009 provide automated and easy to use assessment tools for study subject eligibility,
risk stratification and randomisation of patients into treatment groups. These features are currently in use in a large, multicentre clinical trial underway across Australia and New Zealand.
- Online tracking and reporting of Adverse Events
During 2009, EpiSoft developed a generic Adverse Event reporting module that is currently in use in a large, multicentre clinical
trial underway across Australia and New Zealand.
- Dynamic Reporting
EpiSoft has a range of reporting capabilities. These include use of Telerik reporting for online tabular including grouping, filtering and sorting and export to Excel and comma
delimited, and online graphical analysis. We also have a range of proprietary reporting methods including the ability to populate medical record forms implementing print friendly patient
reports and a proprietary method for adding cumulative queries to our Advanced Patient Search reporting tool without the need for software coding.
- Treatment cycle automation
Automated generation of standard treatment cycle dates including dates for clinical review and automated treatment reminders -
these are in support of drugs involving periodic infusion or injection and are linked to patient reminders and a treatment cycle planner for patients.
- Wide range of form controls available
EpiSoft communities are now making use of our various form controls including Visual Analogue Scales (sliding scales) and images
embedded in forms associated with structured database elements. These new form elements make data capture easier and more visual for clinicians and consumers.
- Complex decision support made easy
We have developed online decision support algorithms that take complex clinical criteria and create a simple checklist to determine a recommended treatment
pathway for a patient or to assess whether a patient is eligible for a particular treatment.
- Collect data in advance of visit from the patient, carer or study participant
Our workflow-based task management system allows a health care provider to send a request to a patient to log in and complete data online such as
a patient history questionnaire, an online diary or an electronic consent form. The clinician has immediate view of any data entered by the patient and can import the
record at the subsequent visit. The system is designed to support routine data collections as well as one-off questionnaires. It saves clinicians a considerable amount of time
recording data during the consultation and reduces the amount of time spent by the patient in the waiting room filling out paper forms.
A secondary token (or passcode) is generated and sent via SMS for further data verification / digital signature if required.
- Task management and patient reminders
EpiSoft is integrated to an SMS gateway for reminders for future appointments, test requests, online questionnaire completion
(any event as defined by the clinical community). Linked to our task management module, messages with suggested text can be sent for a range of reminders.
A visible audit trail of messages sent to patients is available. Our SMS charge rates are among the most competitive in the industry.
- Integration to market leading medication database
EpiSoft is integrated to the Australian market leader in medication databases (MIMS) for the structured recording of current
and past medications.
