Alberta Netcare EHR Newsletter www.albertanetcare.ca Vol. 3, No. 3 July - September 2007

N E W S & E V E N T SQ 3 ( JULY-SEPT ) 2 0 0 7

IN THIS ISSUENEW DATA ADDS TO STRONG INFORMATION BASE

UPDATE FROM RSHIP

PHARMACY UPDATE

PHYSICIAN UPDATE

CONTRIBUTING TO STRENGTHENING THE BOND!

The Alberta Netcare Newsletter is switching to a

quarterly format and publication schedule which

will highlight significant developments,

milestones and feature stories. Our next

newsletter is scheduled for November 2007.

Data will continually be added to the Alberta Netcare system. As a result of these additions,thousands of health care professionals across the province can access lab test, DI and otherreports for their patients using Alberta Netcare Portal 2006. The new data contributes tooverall system usefulness for physicians and other health professionals, and ultimately toimproved patient care.

Alberta Netcare congratulates everyone who continues to be involved in the successfuldelivery of these valuable data sources into the Alberta Netcare provincial viewer.

IN MAY • Calgary Health Region added all lab results performed by Calgary Lab Services. Results

from eight Calgary Health Region rural sites will be added over the next six to nine months.This is a major boost to patient care in the Calgary and other southern regions.

• General lab results for all RSHIP regions and Microbiology from four regions (Chinook,David Thompson, East Central and Palliser) joined Northern Lights.

• DI text reports from all the RSHIP regions were added. This adds significantly to theprovince wide availability of this kind of data.

IN JUNE • DI text reports from the Alberta Cancer Board Cross Cancer Institute and private provider

CML HealthCare were added.• The remaining two RSHIP regions (Aspen and Peace Country) added their Microbiology

lab results.• ECG reports and emergency department scanned reports are being added by the

Capital region.• Alberta Cancer Board province wide Operative Reports were made available.

Update from RSHIPThe RSHIP member regions are working on severalinitiatives to enhance the electronic health record.

LAB TEST RESULTS AND DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING

TEXT REPORTS

In May 2007, RSHIP member regions started deliveryof the lab test results and diagnostic imaging (DI)text reports reported in the adjacent article. Then inJune, Peace Country Health and Aspen RegionalHealth began delivering microbiology test results toAlberta Netcare as part of the RSHIP laboratoryresults delivery project.

With these two milestones, the seven RSHIP memberregions are now all delivering general laboratory andmicrobiology test results to Alberta Netcare Portal2006. In the coming months, pathology and bloodbank test results will also be delivered.

CLIENT REGISTRY

The provincial client registry initiative will helpensure patients are more effectively identified at thepoint of service. Within RSHIP, this initiative is nowactively underway. All seven regions will see apassive connection to a client registry in place formid-December 2007.

PICTURE ARCHIVING COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM

(PACS)

Another major project underway is theimplementation of Picture ArchivingCommunications System (PACS) technology fordigital radiology images. Deployment of the PACSinitiative in Peace Country Health Region and AspenRegional Health Authority is underway. Thesedeployments build on the successfulimplementations in David Thompson Health Regionand East Central Health in 2006. Once the PACStechnology is completed, physicians will be able toview the PACS images directly from the clinicalinformation systems within RSHIP. Through theseinitiatives, RSHIP has made significant progress in theenhancement of the provincial EHR.

For contact information please visit the website atwww.rship.ca

In Alberta Netcare Portal 2006, accurate and comprehensive data is the foundation of auseful health record system. The more data available about a patient, the more valuable therecord is for physicians, pharmacists and other health care professionals looking after thatpatient.

Recently, new milestones have been reached in the availability of additional data in theAlberta Netcare System. The new data highlights include the following:

New Data Adds to Strong Information Base

PHARMACIST ACCESS TO THEPROVINCIAL EHR

Pharmacists are increasingly being recognized as essential members ofintegrated patient care teams. In addition to enrolling in Pharmacy Batch, allAlberta pharmacists have the opportunity to enroll for access to AlbertaNetcare Portal. Alberta Netcare provides authorized health care providerswith the ability to access valuable patient clinical information, enhancingtheir ability to provide better patient care. Using Alberta Netcare providespharmacies with access to a range of useful information to assist with bothdispensing and prescribing.

Alberta Netcare is currently available to pharmacists and provides access toimportant patient and dispensed drug information.

For further information regarding enrolling in Alberta Netcare, contact theAlberta Netcare Enrolment and Support Line at 1 (866) 756 2647 or inEdmonton (780) 642 4082.

PRIVACY IS A TOP PRIORITY FORALBERTA NETCARE ENROLMENT

Protecting privacy is a priority for Alberta Netcare. Within the HealthInformation Act (HIA), both pharmacies and pharmacists are identified ascustodians of individual personal information. As such, there is arequirement under the HIA for a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) to becompleted for each pharmacy or practice enrolling in Alberta Netcare. The PIA confirms that appropriate privacy policies and practices are in place.Support is available. For more information, contact the Office of theInformation and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) at (780) 422 6860 or visit www.oipc.ab.ca

POSP FundingExtended Funding under the Physician Office SystemProgram (POSP) for physicians to move frompaper charting to electronic medical recordshas been extended to March 31, 2008 underthe two-year trilateral financial agreementsigned earlier this spring.

The funding extension is intended to increasethe number of physicians using information

technology in a clinicalcontext. Physicians joiningthe program commit to:

• using electronic medicalrecords (POSP Level 2)

• implementing a physicianoffice system that is on theVCUR (Vendor Conformance

and Usability Requirements) Product List

• meeting the outcomes set by POSP.

Application forms for physicians interested in joining the program are posted atwww.posp.ab.ca.

Retroactive funding will be provided toeligible physicians whose funding has endedprovided they meet certain criteria. Physiciansdo not need to apply for retroactivepayments; POSP will contact these physiciansover the summer to confirm eligibility and to

arrange site visits where necessary.Retroactive payments will be available inAugust 2007.

Physicians who are currently enrolled in theprogram will continue to receive fundingaccording to the terms of their contracts.

POSP will continue to offer changemanagement support to help physicians andtheir teams move from paper charting toelectronic medical records. POSP will alsocontinue to set technical and functionalrequirements for physician office systems andto test products against these.

More detailed information will be provided tophysicians and posted on the POSP website atwww.posp.ab.ca as it becomes available.Questions may be directed to POSP by e-mailat posp@albertadoctors.org or by calling(780) 452 1616 or 1 (866) 817 3875.

MANDATORY REPORTING OFDISPENSING EVENTSIn April 2007, Minister Hancock sent a letter to allAlberta pharmacists advising them that as ofSeptember 1, 2007, all community pharmacies mustsubmit their drug dispense records, including personalhealth numbers, to Alberta Netcare.

Since that letter went out, the Alberta Netcare team hasbeen working closely with the Alberta College ofPharmacists (ACP) and the Alberta PharmacistsAssociation (RxA) to provide the necessary support forpharmacists and pharmacies to comply with thisrequirement.

Currently over 60 per cent of all Alberta pharmacies arealready submitting their dispensing records via thePharmacy Batch process. This information is thenavailable to all other authorized health careprofessionals to assist with patient care decisions.

We encourage you to enroll in Alberta Netcare and thePharmacy Batch process as soon as possible, forsupport in doing this, please call 1 (866) 756 2647 or e-mail health.ehrdeployment@gov.ab.ca to contact the Alberta Netcare Deployment Team.

P H A R M A C Y U P D A T E

P H Y S I C I A N U P D A T E

Contributing to Strengthening the Bond!Our Alberta Netcare team was pleased toparticipate in the Strengthening the Bondconference, held from May 3 to 5 in Banff. Theconference was a ‘first in kind’ opportunity forAlberta pharmacists, nurses and physicians toconvene as a group and discuss opportunitiesfor working together to improve patient care.With over 750 participants in attendance, thisconference appears to have been a huge successin fostering enhanced collaboration amongAlberta health care providers.

The Alberta Netcare booth had steady traffic,with health care providers learning of thetremendous value that Alberta’s electronichealth record (EHR) can provide.

The online demonstrations of Alberta NetcarePortal 2006 allowed the team to showcase howsecure electronic access to needed clinicalinformation at the point of care will benefithealth care in Alberta.

Nurses, physicians and pharmacists at theconference were able to ask the Alberta NetcareTeam many important questions. The maintopics of interest were data availability, how togain access to the system andsecurity/confidentiality of individual patientrecords. These questions demonstrated howinvolved and concerned health care providersare in ensuring that Alberta Netcare is usedappropriately to assist in providing optimal care,while protecting individual privacy rights.

The conference presented a great opportunityfor the Alberta Netcare team to interact withmultiple disciplines in the health sector;participate in discussion and feedback anddemonstrate the value of the electronic healthrecord.

The Alberta Netcare booth complemented thetheme of the conference very well. AlbertaNetcare provides an invaluable tool to support ateam-based approach to health care. The abilityto share essential patient information betweenteam members contributes significantly to theability of health care providers to work togetherfor better patient care.

Better patient information. Better care decisions.

STRENGTHENING THE BOND CONFERENCE, MAY 3 TO 5, 2007, BANFF

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Better Patient Information.

Better Care Decisions.

Contact us

To contact us for moreinformation call 1 (866) 756 2647

or visit the Alberta Netcarewebsite at www.albertanetcare.ca