SynapseDirect

Graham:

I personally am of the belief that more is less ... that is too much choice leads to paralysis.

But one of the benefits might be that Jason's popup then allows you to say which drug is for which disease.  So, instead of having multiple tabs with disease classifications, you might bring up the patient's diagnoses instead.  But this then implies we have to know which system a disease belongs to ... which means each disease needs to have that ICD9/10 etc allocated, and not blank.  And a diagnosis has to be made before a Rx is done.

Perhaps too restrictive for my workflow.

 

 

 

Apologies...I briefly tried the new Med Favorites function and added 2 different doses for amox.  It didn't refresh immediately.  I just tried it again and I see my Med Fav list does indeed have both doses now.  Is the Med Fav list  capable of  unlimited drugs now, or just  9?  I agree,  in my previous trials  "less is more"....just  a limited number of  Rx  fav's with a limited number of doses made it  really fast, which is  the purpose of a  fav list anyway.
 

It's a list ... so you can scroll.  But I presume the 9 Jason is referring to are the ones he can see without scrolling.

My version you can maximize the window so that you can see more .. but I don't want to see more!

The Linux version has the unfixed bug about not saving the favorites all the time.

Jason wants a favorites list for all the conditions he treats ... but I think it's easier to just type a couple of letters to filter.  People who use tablets don't like to do keyboard entry because often they don't have keyboards!!

Graham:

It's a list ... so you can scroll.  But I presume the 9 Jason is referring to are the ones he can see without scrolling.

My version you can maximize the window so that you can see more .. but I don't want to see more!

The Linux version has the unfixed bug about not saving the favorites all the time.

Jason wants a favorites list for all the conditions he treats ... but I think it's easier to just type a couple of letters to filter.  People who use tablets don't like to do keyboard entry because often they don't have keyboards!!

 

Medication Favorites is very cool function... I have wanted such a thing for years.  I will put it to the test for the next two days in urgent care and see how it goes, and I'm forewarned in the Linux version (so far) that it's best to not create a favorite until it's ready to be used.

Until I fix it, you could create the favorites using the windows version and copy the favorites.r file to the linux one.

The main purpose of this proposal was to avoid using the keyboard.  Moving your hands from the mouse to the keyboard is time consuming.  I also wanted to avoid scrollbars (time consuming to scroll).  The goal wasn't to put meds in Disease categories, the goal was to be able to have quick click access to more than 1 screen) or medications.

Graham:

I personally am of the belief that more is less ... that is too much choice leads to paralysis.

First off, if you wanted to just use the default 20 on the first tab, then ... how complicated is that ?
The number 1 priority on this section of the EMR is speed.  I really can't see much complexity really.  I think over time you'd know exactly what tab you are looking for and the likely location on that list where the drug is.  I would be expecting lightning fast clicking here showing of the speedy GUI.   Certainly I have have many more medication to RX than specialists.

But one of the benefits might be that Jason's popup then allows you to say which drug is for which disease.  So, instead of having multiple tabs with disease classifications, you might bring up the patient's diagnoses instead.  But this then implies we have to know which system a disease belongs to ... which means each disease needs to have that ICD9/10 etc allocated, and not blank.  And a diagnosis has to be made before a Rx is done.

Perhaps too restrictive for my workflow.

I agree too restrictive.  Is the SSRI for depression or recalcitrant PMS ?  I dont really want a list of drugs based on disease, the multi tabs were for speed.  Putting the drugs under a tab with a disease name was more for just logical categorization.  Another doc might want to just call them Tab1 Tab2 and they would just memorize which drugs are in each area.

Also, my GUI wouldn't break your method of !ramipril .....  so you could get to just ramipril doses by using your method. 

One reason why avoiding the keyboard is not of dire need is that most meds can be distinguished from all other meds, by just the first three letters.

so, I wouldn't have to take my hand off the mouse, I could just use the other hand and "one finger tap" the 3 letters in (and press enter). 

a tiny button to bring up the popup.

I like the location in front of the word drug: 

Proposal:

individual drug shortcuts (optional).  

drug categories

drug notes. 

The find button is optional .. just using the enter key works too.

The add button is to add to your list of favorites.

The idea of a favorites list is to quickly bring up a prescribing schedule for a drug you know about.  Whereas your scheme is a complete prescribing module based on drug categories.  Quite a different functionality. So, your idea would in fact replace the main prescribing screen.

Now this is more like it ... but I think maybe we can get away from the !

Remember, this is not finalized... we are still prototyping.

Graham:

The find button is optional .. just using the enter key works too.

I know.  That is what I will use.  I just suggested a quicker more intuitive location for [Find], I wont use it. 

The add button is to add to your list of favorites.

I suggest that the Medication Favorites Editing buttons (Add, Delete) don't need to be seen until you hit the [Edit] button, and when you do hit the [edit] button, the Prescribe (use) button doesn't need to be seen.  Close is needed on both.

Note: I will not be adding drugs in real time, I will be doing my editing while patients are not around.   

Jason,

I have used drug categorization in another EMR as a method of rapidly filtering the list of drugs.  I can't say it was terribly helpful overall, but I'm keyboard centric.

I wholeheartedly agree with your keyboard-to-mouse issues.  I've actually run stopwatch tests to see just how much time is lost with some functions while futzing around keyboard-to-mouse.  Better to try and stick pretty much with keyboard or pretty much mouse if possible.

In my tests so far on synapse-linux, I find the new Med Fav list just what I expected.  I used it on several patients today, and it's hardly any slower on the keyboard than the regular "Manage Medications" function.  Just type in !Cyclobenzaprine, a dose, a sig, a couple more clicks and you're done.  Next time it's !Cyclob and bingo!.  Very cool.  I'm impressed.  I can see an extra button to select Med Fav for mouse-centric, with tabs or buttons to click to filter, but why not just make the clicks filter strickly alphabetical?  As you say, you know exactly which med you're prescribing, not doing a fuzzy search here.

Don't put too many drugs in your favorites ... the format will probably change!