AN ER WITHOUT PAPER!!!

emergency · Apr 12, 2002

We have been using EMSTAT in the very busy Level II trauma ctr here in Melbourne Fl for about 1.5 years now, and most of us love it. The best part is that you can actually READ the md orders, and the worst part is the timing of your nursing notes. When it's total chaos, instead of "retiming" the notes (an option in EMSTAT), sometimes I write a note and state "at 1230 pm primary assessment done, late entry d/t hands on pt care". Haven't gotten written up yet, so it must be acceptable. If you have a good systems administrator, they can add anything you want to the assessment choices also. For instance, just the other day I realized that most of my "chest pain" people are actually describing it as "chest pressure". Not a big difference to us, but the administrator was able to add pressure to the choices, therefor making it much more specific. Good luck, I think you will really like it. Also when the admitting md calls to give orders, everything is right there on the screen as you take the orders.

MPHkatie · May 1, 2002

My ED is soon going to a computerized system- no more chalkboard. I am terrified that it will make me insane. in the training sessions, it all seemed to work pretty well, but for the real thing, help, Tomarro will be my first day on since the system has started, so I'll let you know how it goes. But I am really scared, I had computer charting in the ICU and it was great, but the ICU, well, it isn't the ER

Y2KRN · May 1, 2002

Hello,

We are going live with our new computerized system Ameolior, on June first at the same time we open our new ED. I will let you know how it goes! It will be nice to be able to access the chart even if the Docs have it. The rest looks pretty confusing right now. We are trialing part of the system in Triage and things seem to being going okay so far!

Y2KRN

Trauma Columnist · May 1, 2002

Well, we are over a month into EMSTAT and love it!! I do agree though it is difficult to retime notes, so I free text too.

Y2KRN · May 24, 2002

Well we have gone live with our new computer system. It has crashed twice already. Some things I like a lot it makes checking in a squad so much easier. Trauma and code situations are different. I just wish the thing would stay up!!

Y2KRN

MPHkatie · May 25, 2002

So far, our new system has not been all that bad, though it did reduce two nurses to tears during the first week, (ugh,) It was billed as a system that never goes down (I had to wonder about this) day one, it crashed, and about a week ago our ED managed to overwhelm the system and crashed it as well... I guess we are busier than the IT guys imagined...

suwanee · Jun 24, 2002

i worked in an ED in Atlanta in 1999 that had been using computer charting for about a year. Every staff member also had wireless phones that could call anywhere in the city, but only worked in the hospital.

meandragonbrett · Jun 24, 2002

We have it in our Ambulator Surgery Centre of my hospital, it's ok as long as you have enough computers to do your charting. We have about 35 nurses for post\pre-op, and about 300 cases a day. It gets hairy sometimes trying to find a PC. we have about 10 PC's for 35 nurses, plus the other staff. Go figure.

Brett

teeituptom, BSN, RN · Jul 12, 2002

Howdy Yall

from deep in the heart of texas

Got a question for yall. If its in a puter, cant everything be changes by some geek to protect corporate and thus leave the nurse high and not so dry... Tampering possibilities scare me with computer charting

mary35np · Jun 19, 2003

We are in the process of looking at electronic medical record and fully automated ED. What system do you have and how did they decide on a system? :rolleyes:

mother/babyRN, RN · Jun 20, 2003

I come from the before and after world of computer/paper charting..When we finally went to computers, at first I thought that would be nuts. It was WONDERFUL! Now, in my newest facility we are doing paperwork and I can only glance longingly at the computer we use to put orders in because I MISS THE COMPUTER AND LACK OF PAPERWORK PAPERWORK PAPERWORK! Don't know how that would work in the ER...Let us know! :)

dm2 · Oct 4, 2003

We've tried meditech and dropped it for E.D. charting, but must use it for order entry and inhouse communications. (out dated and slow!, time intensive and negatively affected our efficiency!)

We tried Ibex and it had its good and bad sides, not too hard to learn and did regurgitate some hx info when you pulled a pt up, if they had been there since the program was in place. It got dropped for the internet access(server was offsite, used internet access)

We have used t-systems for some time in paper form and will be going to computerized version next week. Will be interesing to see how it goes. Am hoping it is as good as it looks!