Contact Log

Summary

This enhancement to the RIS Contact Log introduces the ability to configure individual screens and worklists that use the contact log to restrict the contact types displayed to only relevant types.

With this change only the follow-up types configured for a screen or worklist are available and displayed. A Show All checkbox is available to display all contact log entries.

Background

Previously, the list of available contact types was configurable from the FollowUpType RIS Lookup Table Editor, but offered no configuration options, so all entries in the contact log would appear on all RIS screens that included a Contact Log tab.

While the FollowUpType RIS Lookup Table was initially the only configuration option for Contact Log entries, the ContactLogMethod RIS Lookup Table was created to manage some specific workflows that needed to be separated (currently, Critical Results and Clinical Tasks).

Currently, all worklists using FollowUpType will lump all of the contacts together across worklists, while worklists using ContactLogMethod completely segregate contacts to a single worklist.

This becomes an issue when implementing multiple workflows in RIS that revolve around the most recent entry in the Contact Log. When an unfiltered Contact Log is shared across multiple different worklists that have their own workflows, not only will users see an inordinately long list of entries, but the concurrent workflows may confuse Follow Up Types that appear to be in conflict with each other.

For example, a patient might be on the Orders To Schedule WL and the IVT WL at the same time. On the IVT WL, the IVT team may be trying to reach the referring physician or insurance company related to the authorization. So they may be entering contacts like: "Chart Notes Requested 1," "Chart Notes Requested 2" or "Submitted for PreCert." And on the OTS WL, a different team may be entering contacts like: "Called Patient - 1^st Attempt," "Called Patient - 2^nd Attempt," etc. Each of those workflows may involve a progressive set of contact steps and Custom Views that are built on staff worklists to group the steps accordingly. So when the workflows cross paths, it can throw off the workflow for both teams.

As an example, a user working the BI-RADS 4/5 WL that has custom views set up to show the 5 possible stages for biopsy scheduling / pathology results follow-up will be impeded when another user adds a Contact Log entry from the IVT WL with a Next FollowUp Type of "Contact Insurance Company." This is a problem because the row is not going to be visible on the correct custom view for the BI-RADS 4/5 WL.

There are some occasions when it is necessary for Contact Log entries to be shared across multiple worklists because certain workflows for one process may be dependent upon another process’s progress/completion.  For this reason, moving the FollowUpType configuration into the ContactLogMethod structure was not desirable because it would not allow the flexibility of choosing when contact entries should be segregated to a particular workflow or whether it should be incorporated into multiple specified workflows.

Feature Description

With this change, details of the screens and worklists that relevant to each follow up type are configured from the updated FollowUpType RIS Lookup Table Editor.

When configured, the Contact Log tab for a patient will now be filtered by default to display only those contact types configured for the screen. Checking the Show all checkbox on the screen allows viewing of all contact activity for the patient.

When adding a contact log entry, only the contact types configured for the screen are displayed.

It is possible to configure the same contact type to be available on multiple screens.

Additional Notes

When no specific contact type restriction rules are configured, all options will display.

The same filters apply to the "Next Follow Up Type" dropdown.

Worklist Impact

The worklist columns related to Last Contact (e.g. Last Contact [Date] and Last Contact Type) will be populated with the data for the most recent contact log entry that is configured for the worklist.  If a particular FollowUpType is configured to display on the Orders To Schedule WL and the IVT WL, it will be displayed in both places regardless of whether it originated from the IVT screen or the Schedule Order screen.

If it is desirable to have the same FollowUpType used in multiple workflows but segregated from each other, it is possible to configure them as distinct FollowUpTypes.  For example, the following FollowUpTypes could be created and assigned to different worklists:

·         Patient Phone Call – 1^st Attempt

o    Orders To Schedule WL

·         MA Patient Phone Call – 1^st Attempt

o    ACR Cat. 0 Follow-Up WL

o    ACR Cat. 4/5 Follow-Up WL

o    Mammo Follow Up Orders WL

Note that the wording of the description was changed slightly to distinguish between the intended workflows.

The Last Contact Follow Up Count column on worklists will only include the contact types that have been configured for that worklist when displaying counts.

Next Follow Up columns remain distinct per worklist, as before.

Configuration Instructions

System Administrators must complete the following actions to enable this feature:

RIS Client

Changes to FollowUpType RIS Lookup Table Settings

• From the FollowUpType RIS Lookup Table Editor, configure the relevant settings for each Follow Up Type Code:

• • Add each Screen from which the code may be added by the user.

  • Add each Worklist where the code should be eligible for display.