EMR

Help the Doctor! When Systems & The System Fail Physicians

7 Comments

“Help, I need somebody! Help, not just anybody! Help, you know I need someone, help!” –Help!, The Beatles

“We are all here on earth to help each other; what on earth the others are here for I don’t know.” – W. H. Auden

After the storm, Falmouth, MA

After the storm, Falmouth, MA

“Help the doctor!”

I’m sure most surgeons have heard this exasperated statement at some point in the operating room. It is said with that special mix of frustration, irritation, and sarcasm, usually when things aren’t going smoothly. When there is fumbling or bumbling, when the assistance, the systems, the help are failing, breaking down.

That same emotional mix is permeating medicine; this statement of exasperation could well be the new rallying cry for physicians.

Since I have started to write, and to post to this blog, I have also started to read even more of the blogs out there, primarily the medical writing. Part of writing is reading. As I write about the subjects and issues and events that touch my professional life, I have noticed that many of the same are on the minds of my colleagues. They likewise broadcast their thoughts to the universe. I am conflicted, I confess. I don’t know whether I feel a tinge of disappointment that my observations and epiphanies are not so singular or earth-shattering, being shared by others; or vindicated, to see so many with similar experiences leading them to similar observations and conclusions. We each are unique, though, with slightly different angles as we approach the topics, like the facets on a diamond. But, we are all on the same gemstones, and like the facets, reflecting more light, illuminating the stone. So I will claim my facet on the gem, and hope to illuminate. I add my voice to the chorus.

One thing that shines through so clearly to me as I read, as I go to medical meetings, or even attend any gathering involving two or more physicians, is the general sense of frustration. It touches all doctors, regardless of specialty, employment status, or even level of training or experience.

It comes as no news to observe that our capital-S System is broken, and that our lowercase-s systems are failing us. I think that the root of the problems with both share a common underlying cause.

These systems no longer help the doctor. Continue reading →

Storytelling: The Story Unravels in the EMR

1 Comment

“Storytelling is important. Part of human continuity.” –  Robert Redford

 

IMG_0454

(Storytelling, Part Two) The history and physical, the progress notes, the testing are combined in the medical record, weaving these threads together to form the narrative that is the story of the patient. The electronic medical record (EMR) represents a threat to that, and the story unravels.

It is no wonder, and should come as no surprise, that many doctors in general, and myself in particular, buck and chafe with the imposition of  the EMR that is nearly ubiquitous in hospitals, and physician offices and clinics.

Most systems are unwieldy and do not integrate well into the work flow, especially in an office or clinic setting. So either the physician continues on with the old processes, saving the charting for later after the completion of the visit (which has some problems with recall, workflow, and time management, as you might imagine), or the physician’s nose is buried in the laptop or tablet device, focused on clicking the right boxes, the right templates.

In both circumstances, the narrative breaks down.

The heart of this narrative is derived from the communication between the physician and the patient, both verbal and non-verbal. This builds trust, the foundation of the physician-patient relationship, trust that is built by the attention to their story, taking the time to listen. Maintaining eye contact, reading body language. For all too many patients, this may be one of the only times and places in their life where someone does, in fact, listen to what they have to say. When you can’t pay attention because of the computer in front of you, or because you can’t take the time because you have to get to the chart and the next patient (or both), the communication breaks down, the bond begins to strain–if you were even able to establish a bond in the first place in these circumstances.

Make no mistake, patients notice this. They don’t like it, either. Continue reading →