Home Forums Discussions General Discussion Sending notes to consultants/referring docs

I'm a family doc and often like to send copies of my notes on patients to consultants who are also involved in the care of a patient. Does anyone have any tips on speading up this process or delegating the task? I can use the "Compose Letter" feature and print out a letter, but it's time consuming. I can also send a message to my secretary to "c.c. Dr. Smith". Any other tricks you might suggest?

Thanks.

John
Family Doc, Massachusetts

Well, there are several ways depending on what you actually want. Do you just want to send them a copy of your note that day? If that's it, after you sign the note and the letter writer comes up, you don't have to write a letter. Just print the "detailed noted" or "H&P" to your fax machine and to the consultants fax number. They have it immediately after you sign it.

Or if it's later on, you can just hit "CTRL-P" and the print note or letter writer comes up.

I personally write a letter with a generic template saying "thanks for asking me to give my opinion" and then the assessment and plan and off it goes by the print/fax function.

I agree with what Travis says. On my computer, the default printer is the fax server, so the note is easily (and immediately) faxed.
I must admit that I generally just send a note now, without the accompanying letter. This is partly due to the severe limitations of the letter writer, and also my hope that a rapidly received, helpful note is more important to the referring doc than a letter.

Jon,

I am happy with just receiving a consultant's note, as long as that note states the impression and plans and follow up. A letter is mostly just junk ego stroking ("Thank you for sending me this very pleasant and interesting patient").

Jon,

Also, I don't need an endoscopic photo of that gigantic polyp you yanked out. Just the nitty-gritty.

yeah, we can really do w/o the pictures. But please, just don't start sending the video.

And I thought you guys all loved those photos!
Are you saying I should scrap my plan to use that beautiful Crohn's colitis shot for my practice Christmas card?

I use the letter writer and have a template set up. It is pretty easy I think . I don't think it is perfect but it works simple enough. ANd since i am the specialist, I enjoy sending the letter...it gets me referrals. I have sent out over 600 letters and i finally got one of the pediatricians in town to refer me a patient!! a real referral!

Anyway I would use UpDox. it makes it easy but could be just as easy as with an efax..the only advantage to updox is that for incoming correspondence it is awesome just put the incoming note from consultants or PCP's into the chart.

The old insurance/Medicare rules supposedly said that we, as the consultant, needed to have communication with the referring physician acknowledging the "consult" and providing an opinion without taking over full care for the patient.

That's why I still send the letter with the single sentence saying, "Thanks for asking me to see Joe for 'my opinion'"

Of course, now that Medicare has gotten rid of consults, it's worthless but I keep the habit just in case any of the insurance companies who still allow consults want to battle me

Thanks for the suggestions. I've been printing out my notes and then having my secretary fax them. Updox will be a big improvement.

As far as colonoscopy videos, those will have to go at the bottom of my Netflix queue.

I have a template letter I just modify slightly. Click the check box below for "include note" with the letter. Hit the print, select fax machine... there you go!

As Ketan mentions, you can use Updox to send the correspondence. You can go one better, and use the messaging component of Updox to send the message electronically.

The consultant doesn't have to have an Updox account, you send them the message, Updox sets up their free account on the fly, and they get their notification in an email that you have sent them a message.

Less cost, less time, less trees, as well as getting a read confirmation if you want it.

Indy,
I understand that I could fax or email the coorespondence with Updox; though still with the limitations of the AC letter writer (which is a major reason not to do the letter in the first place).
I don't understand the messaging component of Updox. Is that something different?

Probably referring to what you are calling email - the message actually doesn't appear in the email, so I would call it messaging instead - recovering engineer moment I suppose.

Although we (and I) gripe about the letter writer a lot on here, I've grown so used to it over the last two years that I only wish for a couple of things with it...Being able to use my letterhead (or rich text) and it saving as a .pdf file.

I don't, as many have requested, wish it would incorporate Microsoft Word. That seems bulky to open another program. I like speed.

So when I send this "message", the other provider opens his "message machine" to read it?

Sorry to be sarcastic; I now understand your terminology, but I asked the question because I would like to use Updox, but if I use that function, it means the receiving doc has to get the letter and note into his own EMR. Whether that is AC (rarely) or not, it is a pain for him; he can likely just import a fax more easily. So a letter is nice in theory, but makes more work for the referring doc. Does that sound right or am I missing something?

Jon, no worries I laugh at myself often enough.

Just as you can send lab results as an attachment to a patient through Updox, you can send a document to another Provider in the same way. Depending on how he imports documents, you should be able to import straight digital - depends on their setup.

Of course if you get them on Updox, how much easier than that?

Thanks for all the feedback re: my original question. I got Updox working and I was able to send a note on a patient to Updox.

How would I send it to a consultant? Should I get a program like efax? Isn't that one of the things Updox is for, to send notes out as well as receive stuff?
I've never faxed from my computer before. I'm still struggling to think "virtually".

Updox does all the work for you:
1. Enter the consultant's contact info in the Updox Address Book tab, including the fax telephone number if you plan to fax info to him/her.
2. Load the info to be sent into the Updox Workspace by using the Print command in the documents application (whether a PDF, Word, or within AC) and choose Updox Printer as the choice of printer.
3. The document will appear in Updox.
4. Click the Send Item button after displaying the document in Updox.
5. In the window that opens, fill in the consultant's name, and choose the correct contact from the drop down list.
6. In the window that opens next, fill in a message (if needed) on the fax facesheet, and click Send at the top left. The document is sent by fax to your consultant. You can even create templates in Updox to fill in the Instructions area of the fax coversheet.

If you want to see the finished product, send an Updox fax to a "real" fax machine.

Another possibility in using Updox to send it electronically via the portal. We are encouraging practices to do this as it doesn't cost anything, and is arguably more traceable and secure.

Much like a patient through the portal, the consultant gets an email indicating a message, and then they login to the website to get the message.

The goal being less time, less trees, less steps.

Does anyone know of a way to get LOGO on the header. I fax the notes and I have been told by marketing pros that you really want your logo name address etc. The way letter write sends now it is very generic and could easily be lost in shuffle.