Microfilm Faces Obsolescence as Paper Medical Records Hit the Dust Bin

 

 

For years hospitals and doctor’s offices placed medical records in neat folders held in filing cabinets. After discharge from a hospital, the patient could easily access his records and copy them for a year. Then they went into a storage facility or transferred onto microfilm. When a patient needed copies, the medical records librarian would pull the microfilm, read through it on a microfilm enlarger, them print copies that were gray and indistinct. Electronic Medical Records, EMR, reduced the need for paper records and microfilm retrieval. According to www.datawitness.com, a microfilm can be translated into digital data storage which enables the data to be retrieved electronically.

 

The Canadian Company, Datawitness, produced a web based system permitting data to be stored and recorded digitally. There is complete analogue back up of data, yet there is no need to store the microfilm. In a fascinating project, Datawitness worked on the e-time capsule project, in which data was stored in a time capsule to be buried at Stonehenge for 100 years, according to www.e-timecapsule.com. Hospitals and clinics felt buried by the volumes of paper records stored in their facilities. They embraced electronic records.

 

The West Virginia eHealth Initiative, www.wvehi.com, is a coalition of healthcare workers, business, and government to promote and coordinate the use of electronic medical records. WVeHI hopes to develop statewide health information exchange networks to connect physicians, laboratories, pharmacies, and hospitals. Patients will be able to readily retrieve their medical records. With the ability to collect and analyze data, healthcare will be improved and information shared easily. There will be fewer billing errors since the diagnoses will be in the electronic data.

 

To help train healthcare providers, The West Virginia Medical Foundation has helped stamp out microfilm and improve patient care with a Health Information Technology program. EMR permits information sharing at multiple locations. The information is at www.wvsma.com/foundation. Say “good bye” to micro film and “hello” to electronic medical records.

Email Love Letter

The Email Love Letter As I watched an old Movie, the Love Letter starring Tom Selleck, I watched a letter intended for a love of many years fly through the air and land on a window sill. An unintended recipient read it and became interested in the head book store owner who did not write the letter. He folded it and placed it in a book. When the owner read the letter, she felt amorous towards Tom Selleck who did not write the letter. As other readers read the letter, it changed their lives while enjoying the mysterious “love letter.” However, hardly anyone writes letters any more. More people write emails than postal service letters. Hallmark wants customers to send more cards and letters according to www.hallmark.com. A modern “Love Letter” would be email, Sent by mistake to various people at different stages in their lives, it will enliven the days as they open the email love letter and read it. It will remain on their computers as evidence of undying love. Email love letters replaced letters according to www.news.znet. Just as a letter can be savored and reread, the email message can be reopened and reread without the risk of dropping it or damaging it. I find many reasons to use email in place of Postal Service email. The messages arrive sooner, and the reply rate is high if the recipient knows the sender. When a physician wants to send lab data to a patient, the physician can send it as an attachment or copy it onto the body of email, according to www.ama.org. A record of the transmission and reply appears. The patient can click on it to read the results as many times as needed. Doctors read Medical Letters to improve patient care. For the past 38 years I have read printed Medical Letters which address a variety of topics and critical evaluations of medications. Now I can read archived Medical Letters electronically at www.medical letter.org for the period of 10 years. It saves space and increases ease of retrieval. Email has replaced snail mail.

Websites and Short Films

This week I have been impressed with the design and utility of Web sites. At the hospital we needed less expensive emergency room supplies than what was usually ordered. Since the hospital is almost broke, the administrator wanted a better price on slings, syringes, and injectibles. From www.mooremedical.com and www.clint.com I found good values for bulk supplies. Both Web sites were easy to navigate, had multiple links for other supplies, and had consistent branding. Each page had company logos and used the same color and font.
 
Thirty years ago, the hospital’s purchasing agent would be in his truck checking supplies from drug stores and warehouses. Now he turns on the computer, logs in, types the URL, and has a world of suppliers from which to make a purchase with the best value. When he purchased a new X-Ray Processor, he was able to evaluate several models on Web sites before making selections for the radiologist to consider. Well designed Web sites make purchasing equipment and supplies easier than before.
 
Twenty five years ago the hospital purchased a GE X-Ray Processor. Though the company mailed a huge binder and a short film with the processor specifications, it took weeks to send the binder to the processing agent and radiology department to share the same information that can now be e-mailed within seconds, thanks to the Websites, email, and the Internet. Because it required a projector, it was more challenging to watch the short film. Since there is a computer at every desk, it is easy to share hospital information with anyone who has a need to know by logging on. Websites have made the job of purchasing agent easier.

 

I see the value of short films as an education tool to explain procedures to patients. If I plan an arthroscopic procedure I will explain it then give a patient the short film to review at home as many times as needed.
 
When the hospital ordered a G.E. X-Ray Processor, the company sent a short film to demonstrate its good features. The entire staff met in the library to view the short film which demonstrated many new and innovative features. It will be archived in the library should anyone else need to see it before a purchase decision can be made. Though cumbersome, short films have always fascinated me.
 
When the radiologist planned to purchase a BMW, he received several short films which used famous actors. There were exciting plots involving high speed chases to demonstrate BMW’s maneuverability. Many healthcare providers watched them several time. They were of high quality and were clever. There is a resurgence of short films for the consumer who needs more than a sound bite to make a decision on a high involvement purchase such as a vehicle.

 

 
 

What’s Up Doc?

     My name is Diane and I have worked as a Healthcare Provider for over thirty years in many fields of medicine such as Public Health and Emergency Medicine. As a experienced physcisian I have used books, print media, slides and slide projectors, overhead projectors, paper and pens, C-Band, Satellite communications, telephone, fax, and email. Through Integrated Marketing Communication, I plan to explore chat rooms, effectively use an Ipod, explore web forums, and text messaging. I hope to express ideas on this blog and share information in emerging media and how it impacts medicine.