1. Store complete content records
Whether storing medications, allergies, diseases or conditions in a patient’s medical record, be sure to capture each of the following:
- The content type (e.g., GPI, NDC, DDID, allergen class, medical condition, etc.)
- The content value (the code itself)• A text description of the value
2. Provide inputs wherever possible
Drug order and dose screening features work best when all inputs are provided. If certain inputs are not available, consider using default values. For example, if a patient’s renal function is unknown, establish a default value — possibly one that assumes normal renal function.
3. Connect alerts to additional information
Along with drug interaction, allergy and precaution screening alerts, Medi-Span provides vital drug attributes, such as severity level. For a more in-depth assessment on each alert, use Medi-Span to review comment text, view monographs and reference citations, all at the click of a button.
4. Make patient education leaflets readable
Take care of patients with visual impairment or limited reading skills. Consider larger font options, clear font types, bold section headers and limited line length to provide more readable text and a more positive patient experience.
5. Consider your need for historic drug data
If you anticipate needing to reference historic drug data in the future (such as NDCs, drug pricing or drug attributes), develop database archives to store this Medi-Span data. That way, you will be able to retain this data even when Medi-Span updates.
6. Use picklists
When clinicians, other medical personnel or patients need to capture data about diseases, medical conditions or drug allergies, Medi-Span picklists can facilitate the selection of these items. Picklists can help save time and reduce errors.
7. Review your screening filters
Evaluate alerts by reviewing the impact — both good and bad — that filter settings may have for screening around drug interactions and precautions. Consult with Medi-Span for guidance on how to use filters based on severity, documentation level, or care setting to hone screening for dosing, frequency, durations, therapeutic duplications, and more.
