2023-04-30

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 5: Find Drop-In Centres

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Take advantage of the Prescriber Drop-in Centres
Scheduled in-person drop-in help sessions are available at RGH and SHC for Calgary Zone and GNCH and MCH for Edmonton Zone, just before and for weeks post-launch. These are good for troubleshooting issues related to mobility, personal device, dictation, personalization and workflows, as well as login, role and access problems.

Schedules for the drop-in centres (including dates, times, and rooms) can be found in the Connect Care Manual. Note that locations and times can change. Late-breaking information about the drop-in centres will be posted in the Connect Care Manual (launchhelp.connect-care.ca).
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2023-04-29

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 6: Follow the Tippies

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Follow Connect Care Tippies
With most Launch 6 prescribers having full Connect Care production access, this is prime time for setting up starter personalizations that can streamline Connect Care workflows at launch. This is also a great time to collect simple best practices that colleagues have found most useful. These "Tippy" peer-to-peer tips can be considered within a moment, with many able to speed things up for most users.

Tippies are published on our "Tips" channel (button above or tips.connect-care.ca) and are re-released approximately twice a week in the peri-launch period. Please consider subscribing to the Tips channel.

The entire Tippies collection can be viewed via tippies.connect-care.ca or tippy.connect-care.ca (worth bookmarking).
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2023-04-28

On Other Channels...

Thank you for continuing to check the Connect Care update blog for prescribers (ideally, subscribe to multiple channels; see instructions). Recent additions to this blog and its various channels:

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Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 7: Support Cutover Activities

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Support Cutover Activities
Key for attending physicians, nurse practitioners and trainees anticipating Launch 6 inpatient and/or outpatient launch is work to make sure that essential information is ready for loading or linking into the Connect Care clinical information system before launch... and that legacy systems are tidied up so that they can be retired. Related preparations include: 
  • General inpatient: 
    • For non-Sunrise Clinical Manager (SCM) sites, make sure that all dictations are complete and signed; use dictation (eScription) for all admissions, transfers and consults between now and launch, if possible, so that transition notes at launch can refer to recent documentation in Netcare. 
    • For SCM sites, complete documentation using existing systems (templates, eScription); SCM production will be accessible post-cutover since not all SCM documentation is copied to Netcare.
  • Surgical inpatient: Make sure that work is underway to enter upcoming surgical cases into Connect Care.
  • Outpatient: Make sure that all clinic documentation is complete, signed and routed, while also taking care to close any charts still open in legacy systems.
  • Complex patients: Consider pre-launch problem list documentation to support easy transition note generation at launch. Please reach out to your Cutover Team at cc.cutover@ahs.ca for the timing of this activity.
  • Long-term care (LTC):
    • April 30–May 5 - Review orders entered into Connect Care for LTC residents to ensure accuracy of medication and non-medication orders. 
    • LTC clinical teams may still be entering care plan information and other clinical documentation, but all orders will be entered as of April 28.
Key resources:
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2023-04-27

Home Care Referral and Request Workflows Standardized and Simplified

Prescribers have previously reported some struggles with home care referral workflows in Connect Care. There were different instructions for a hard to remember process in inpatient and outpatient settings.

An integrated "Home Care Orders" order set is introduced April 27, 2023 to simplify processes for prescribers. The same workflow is used in emergency, inpatient and outpatient contexts.

The new ordering tool consolidates all activities in one place, while offering prescribers default instruction text for the most common home care service requests. Streamlined workflows are described in the Clinician Manual and linked tip sheets:

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Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 8: Complete Login Lab

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Complete CMIO Login Lab
It is essential that all Launch 6 prescribers confirm access to the AHS Network (insite.ahs.ca), to the Unified Access Portal (myapps.ahs.ca) and to Production (PRD) Connect Care.

In addition, all prescribers are required to complete a "CMIO Login Lab" found within Connect Care Hyperspace. This checks that the right tools are assigned to the user in the right way. 

Step-by-step instructions are provided in a tip:
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2023-04-26

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 9: Check In Basket

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Check In Basket
Launch 6 prescribers who have completed basic training and the associated proficiency assessment gain access to the Connect Care production environment (PRD), where they can complete personalizations and otherwise get ready for launch. As soon as a prescriber gains access to PRD, they also have an active "In Basket", with immediate implications to the routing of patient test results and communication.

Some prescribers participate in or are affected by early cutover and conversion activities; they can line up orders that need to be ready in the system at launch. There may be communications that relate to setting up surgical cases or outpatient encounters that will occur post-launch. In addition, once a prescriber's account is activated in PRD, new test results will start to automatically route to the prescriber's In Basket, and other Connect Care users can send messages to the prescriber via In Basket.

More information on managing results and reports is available in the Connect Care Manual. A Results Management Toolkit has been prepared (and is continually enhanced) to help prescribers hone effective and efficient results management habits. Prescribers with "mixed-context" practices need to be aware of situations where results might route to both their Connect Care and external EMR systems.

For these and other reasons, it is best to start regular In Basket checks now. A useful In Basket personalization sends alerts to an email of one's choice when there is new In Basket content.
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2023-04-25

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 10: Anticipate Computerized Prescriber Order Entry (CPOE)

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Anticipate CPOE
Computerized Prescriber Order Entry (CPOE) refers to the process of a medical prescriber entering orders electronically via a digital health record instead of using paper-based processes. 

CPOE offers an important means by which health processes and outcomes can improve. Entered orders trigger clinical decision supports that can help avoid unsafe medications, promote best practices and improve system performance. Studies show that the move from paper to CPOE decreases common medication errors by 50% or more.

Accordingly, it is a Minimum Use expectation that all tests, interventions and medications that can be ordered in Connect Care must be ordered in Connect Care. Very few exceptions are acceptable.

Connect Care provides tools that make CPOE as easy as possible. Indeed, with the convenience of ordering personalized favourites on any computer or mobile device, anywhere, anytime, ordering is easier to do, and do well, than when constrained by paper. Still, Launch 6 will bring significant change for many providers at facilities moving from paper to computerized order entry. This is a good time to anticipate and prepare for CPOE:
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2023-04-24

CMIO Prescriber Drop-In Centres Now Open - Virtual and In-Person

The CMIO Connect Care Launch 6 prescriber drop-in centres are now open! 

These centres are good for troubleshooting issues related to mobility, personal device, dictation, personalization and workflows, as well as login, role and access problems. 

More information on the drop-in centres and their hours can be found at launchhelp.connect-care.ca.

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Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 11: Anticipate Acute Cutover

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Anticipate Acute Cutover
Cutover for acute care is a process through which key pieces of information about admitted patients are entered into Connect Care prior to launch. The primary concern for prescribers will be the management of medication and non-medication orders, and the translation of important information about patients’ clinical status from a paper record (or Sunrise Clinical Manager [SCM]) to Connect Care.

Prescribers should anticipate, and mobilize resources for, seven key tasks as part of cutover processes:
  • Pre-Launch (May 1–5)
    1. Clean up medication orders in legacy systems. Remove unnecessary orders or unused PRNs.
    2. Fill out or review and sign Non-Medication Order Forms for each admitted patient. Should be found on the front of charts. Deadline is May 3 for acute care teams, May 4 for critical care and rural teams. Ensure the orders are predictive of the patient needs as of May 5 at 05:00.
    3. If Best Possible Medication History (BPMH) was NOT done on the legacy BPMH form at admission, it will have to be done. If BPMH was done on admission, nothing is needed for this step.
    4. Create list of all patients the team is following by May 5 at 23:00, to ensure smooth creation of provider specific and specialty lists.
    5. Summary Migration to the Hospital Course field and Problem List entry on May 4 and 5. Note this step can also be done post-launch, if teams are not able to do ahead of launch. 
    • Reminder: All team members should be logged out of the legacy and Connect Care systems by May 5 at 23:30, and remain out of the system until May 6 at 05:00.
  • Post-Launch (May 6)
    1. Create provider specific and specialty lists by finding their patients on the individual units throughout the hospital. Once patients are located, attach your service provider team to the patients Current Encounter Treatment Team.
    2. Compare legacy Medication and Non-Medication orders to Connect Care orders. Orders that will be missing include but are not limited to: 
      • Ongoing lab orders, only the first 24 hours worth of lab are being brought over.
      • Reoccurring medications that were ordered after pharmacy closure time. 
      • Wound Care orders. 
      • Area specific orders.
      • Orders that have changed since cutover occurred for patient.
The following FAQs, demo, and checklist can help prescribers prepare for acute cutover activities (for long-term care activities, see this post):
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2023-04-23

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 12: Know Where to Get Downtime Help

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Know where to get Downtime Help
The Connect Care clinical information system (CIS) needs periodic maintenance. Scheduled downtimes can happen as often as monthly, usually in the early hours of a weekday (e.g., between 00:30 and 04:30), avoiding peak patient care times. Downtimes can affect CIS parts (e.g., linked WellSky transfusion system) and/or the entire digital health record. Details about affected sub-systems are posted in advance of a planned downtime, and a variety of backup systems ensure that things like test results, order sets, documentation and other key tools remain accessible. During downtime, a CIS environment that provides a read-only view of chart information is available.

Most clinicians rarely, if ever, experience a scheduled downtime, and unscheduled downtimes are even rarer. The key is to know where to find just-in-time information and support.

The Connect Care Manual is hosted on separate servers not affected by AHS infrastructure, and so remains available during downtimes. In preparation for launch, check out the following link to see what the Manual covers. Essential information on downtime procedures is covered in a 1-page tip sheet, worth bookmarking. The first downtime scheduled after launch is July 13, 2023, so there will be plenty of time to prepare.
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2023-04-22

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 13: Identify Launch Supports

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Identify Launch Supports
This is a good time to check that you and your colleagues know who the Super Users, Medical Informatics Leads or other peer-resources are for your clinical site, group, area or clinic. They can facilitate pre-launch personalization activities. They will be present and a great resource during the weeks around launch. 

Clinical groups may plan for their own start and end-of-day check-ins to flag issues to forward to twice daily launch support meetings.

Note where Launch Supports are described in the Connect Care Manual. This information is frequently updated with specifics about how to find and use in-person, online and telephone supports for help with Connect Care on-boarding, including the daily Super User schedule and details about the Launch 6 Virtual Drop-in Centre and the Calgary (RGH and SHC) and Edmonton (GNCH and MCH) Zone in-person drop-in centres.
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2023-04-21

On Other Channels...

Thank you for continuing to check the Connect Care update blog for prescribers (ideally, subscribe to multiple channels; see instructions). Recent additions to this blog and its various channels:

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Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 14: Get Ready for Interfacility Transfers

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Get Ready for Interfacility Transfers (IFTs)
Transferring admitted patients between facilities may seem a confusing process, particularly when the receiving facility is not on Connect Care. But there's help! 
  • RAAPID: The RAAPID (Referral, Access, Advice, Placement, Information & Destination) service manages all consultation requests within Connect Care, streamlining the process into a single "Intake Encounter". If transferring a patient to an alternate level of care or to emergency care, call RAAPID first.
  • Keep Calm and Navigate: Navigators help prescribers navigate multi-step workflows where it is otherwise easy to forget key requirements. The below navigators support patient movement.
    • Interfacility Transfer (IFT) Navigator: If your patient is being transferred to another facility and is not expected to return.
    • Leave of Absence (LOA) Navigator: If your patient is being transferred to another facility and is expected to return (or you're not sure).
    • Transfer Navigator: If your patient isn't leaving your facility but is being transferred to another department.
    • Discharge Navigator: If your patient is leaving your facility and is not going to another healthcare facility.
For additional information, including tip sheets and demos on specific workflows (e.g., ED vs. specialty consults), see the Connect Care Manual. The below linked infographic is also a handy visual guide on which Connect Care navigator to use for movement of admitted patient.
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2023-04-19

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 16: Confirm Dual Roles

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Ambidextrous? Let us know!
Most physicians work within a primary care or specialty service and are well served by the Connect Care department, role and user template initially assigned to them. Some prescribers work in multiple facilities or specialties (e.g., Critical Care and Medicine), still served well by their Connect Care toolset and the ability to change departments (contexts) on the fly.

Some prescribers work in two or more clinical areas that require quite different clinical information system (CIS) modules. The emergency module (ASAP), for example, is not like the critical care user interface. If one needs to switch between different modules for different roles (e.g., ER physician and Critical Care physician), then more than one "job" needs to be added to one's Connect Care prescriber record.

Connect Care has made these configuration changes for dual-role prescribers who are already known. If you think you may have been missed, likely because you do not see a module you need in PRD, get in touch with Medical Affairs or Provincial NP Services to request adjustments to your profile.
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2023-04-17

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 18: Check Provider Registry Entry

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Confirm PROVIDER REGISTRY Information
The Connect Care clinical information system (CIS) draws from a “provider registry” to store information about clinicians in the CIS. The registry is also a source of information that can affect how CIS user roles and permissions are set up, how providers can find and communicate with one another, and how things like preference lists and referrals work. 

It is important that this information be correct, and getting ready for Connect Care launch is a perfect time to validate information about oneself. Specific instructions are provided in: 
Access and identity essentials are described in the Connect Care Manual.
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2023-04-14

On Other Channels...

Thank you for continuing to check the Connect Care update blog for prescribers (ideally, subscribe to multiple channels; see instructions). Recent additions to this blog and its various channels:

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Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 21: Confirm PRD Access

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Check your PRD (Production) Access
All prescribers who have completed their On Our Best Behaviours (InfoCare) training and Connect Care Proficiency Assessment (EUPA) should be able to log in to the full production version of Connect Care (PRD) by now.

Please do the following from within an AHS network (AHSRESTRICT) or from outside with the aid of an RSA security Token:
  1. Go to myapps.ahs.ca and log in with your AHS username and password. Can't get in? See "Access Problems" in the Connect Care Manual.
  2. Once logged in to myapps.ahs.ca, ensure that the PRD (production) Connect Care icon is available. If not, see "Access to Connect Care Clinical Applications" in the Manual.


  3. Open PRD and log in with your AHS username and password. Can't get in? Contact AHS IT Service Desk or ConnectCare.SupportTeam.Security@ahs.ca. 
We are trying to identify Launch 6 users who somehow got missed in access provisioning. Do not expect access if OOBB (InfoCare) or EUPA is not complete.
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2023-04-13

Ambulatory Tips, Tricks, and Traps - Launch 6 Prescriber Support Sessions

The ambulatory component of basic Connect Care training for prescribers who also provide acute care is necessarily streamlined. However, some prescribers with a significant ambulatory workload may feel like they have not had sufficient exposure to the ambulatory tools and workflows in Connect Care via basic training to be comfortable navigating the Connect Care clinical information system during a busy clinic come launch. To help these users, the CMIO will be hosting additional ambulatory support sessions. 

These 1-hour sessions are an opportunity to see ambulatory workflows in action, to hear advice from providers who have been using Connect Care in busy outpatient practices, and to ask questions – all in anticipation of your first day in clinic on Connect Care.

To register for a session, click on the hyperlinked date for the session that works for you (the sessions are all the same). It will download and open a calendar invite for that session, which you can then respond to and receive the meeting information.

Note that there are also still a few upcoming support sessions for Launch 6 prescribers regarding therapy plans. These sessions demonstrate the process of ordering therapy plans, and will prepare you for entering orders post-launch and when asked to review converted legacy orders prior to launch. For more information on the therapy plan support sessions, see this post.

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2023-04-12

Break-the-Glass Control for Connect Care Self-Access Attempts

As of April 13, 2023, a Break-the-Glass technical control will be launched in Connect Care to prevent inappropriate attempts to access one's own health records. When users search their own name (or a patient's name that matches) within Connect Care, a warning message will be triggered. If the attempted access is for patient care, the user will be prompted to enter a patient care reason for access. Accesses that appear to be inappropriate or suspicious may lead to privacy investigations.

Note that MyAHS Connect is the only appropriate way to access your own health records within Connect Care without the support of your personal healthcare team or Health Information Management; accessing your own information through Connect Care directly is a breach of the Health Information Act.

As previously posted, there is an initiative that enables Connect Care prescribers to activate their own MyAHS Connect account and experience firsthand the benefits of a full-feature patient portal. Personal access can also help clinicians help patients who ask questions about patient portal functions. For more information about MyAHS Connect, including how to complete a self sign-up request, see the below resources:

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Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 23: Use CCIDs

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Use Your Connect Care Identifiers (CCIDs) on Community-based Orders
To ensure that laboratory, diagnostic imaging, and other investigation results and reports are delivered to your community or private office, make sure you use your Connect Care Identifiers (CCIDs) on requisitions when ordering labs and diagnostic imaging from outside of Connect Care. Please continue to also use legacy/non-Connect Care IDs.

CCIDs are provider, submitter and department IDs, and can be found at provideridlookup.ahs.ca. Requisitions from DynaLIFE, Alberta Precision Laboratories (APL) and AHS Diagnostic Imaging have been updated to include fields for these CCIDs.

For more information:
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2023-04-10

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 25: Confirm Connect Care Access and Login Role

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Confirm Access and Role(s)
Do you, or could you, have clinical duties May 6, 2023 or following at a Launch 6 site?

If so, it is essential that you confirm that you have access to the AHS Network (insite.ahs.ca), to the Unified Access Portal (myapps.ahs.ca) and to Production (PRD) Connect Care. A successful PRD login (using your AHS username and password) is just the start. It is also important that a PRD login opens a Connect Care environment appropriate to one's roles and duties. Best to sort out any problems now, well before launch.

A "virtual login lab", which occurs during personalization training, allows Launch 6 clinicians to confirm that they have access to the right tools in the right way. Follow these steps (in order):
  • Complete basic training, the associated end-user proficiency assessment (EUPA) and On Our Best Behaviours (InfoCare privacy training).
  • Login to myapps.ahs.ca with AHS network (HEALTHY) login credentials and launch Connect Care production (PRD).
  • At the Hyperspace login screen, enter your AHS username and password.
  • If multiple "jobs" are presented (multi-role physician), complete the rest of this process for each in turn.
  • When asked for a "Department", choose the appropriate zone virtual clinical department (e.g., Edmonton Zone Cardiology, Edmonton Zone Pediatrics). 
    • Note: Only a few specialties use a physical department for login - see the Manual for the list of exceptions.
  • Once opened into Hyperspace, use the search function (top-right corner), type "CMIO" and jump to the "CMIO Login Labs Info" activity. Alternately, select the top-left "Epic" button, then "Help", then the "CMIO Login Labs Info" submenu item.
  • Examine the information provided and complete the linked survey to indicate whether the physician roles and templates appear correct.
For more information:
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2023-04-07

On Other Channels...

Thank you for continuing to check the Connect Care update blog for prescribers (ideally, subscribe to multiple channels; see instructions). Recent additions to this blog and its various channels:

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2023-04-05

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 30: Get Ready for OBIX (Perinatal Interface Software)

Continuing a list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Complete OBIX Training
OBIX Perinatal Interface Software is a provincial bedside solution which automates the delivery of fetal health information from the electronic fetal monitor (EFM) to the electronic health record (EHR) in Connect Care. On May 6, 2023, all Labour and Delivery (L&D) and non-L&D sites that have an EFM and are launching Connect Care will implement OBIX. The implementation of OBIX Perinatal Interface Software allows electronic sharing of the fetal heart rate (FHR) from the EFM to the Connect Care EHR for obstetrical patients, and makes this information available at bedside, on central monitors and via devices at other locations in Alberta. As it expands throughout Alberta, the provincial OBIX network supports better outcomes for maternal and newborn patients in Alberta. 

OBIX training will allow providers to become familiar with the interface. The training is additional to Connect Care launch training, is delivered entirely online, and takes about 30 minutes for physicians, medical learners and nurse practitioners. You should have already received an email to your AHS email from OBIX Perinatal Online Education and Training (P.O.E.T.) with instructions for how to access your OBIX training. To be prepared for the launch, please complete your OBIX training as soon as possible. For full access to OBIX at launch, complete your training by April 28, 2023.

Care can still be provided prior to completing OBIX training by managing the patient in Connect Care and viewing EFM records at the bedside or on OBIX central monitors. Prescribers who have not completed OBIX training will only be able to view the tracing at the bedside or from OBIX central monitoring locations; once they have completed OBIX training, they can view the tracing from devices elsewhere in the hospital, at other sites, or remotely.
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2023-04-03

Countdown Checklist L6, T-minus 32: Get Ready for Billing Workflows

Continuing our list of essential actions for Connect Care Launch 6 prescribers readying for launch May 6, 2023...
  • Learn about Billing Workflows in Connect Care
A previous item introduced the “Service Codes” activity available in patient charts opened in Hyperspace, which allows prescribers to integrate Professional Billing into clinical workflows. Watch this short, animated video to understand the advantages of this workflow over traditional paper billing documentation. Documentation via the Connect Care mobile apps, Canto and Haiku, uses workflows similar to Service Codes. 

The Alberta Health Information Act permits prescribers to use personally identifiable health information for the purposes of getting paid for services. Traditionally, medical staff at AHS, Covenant Health and other publicly funded facilities would print this protected patient information from legacy electronic medical records (EMRs), and then make notes on the printout about health services charges to be submitted to Alberta Health or other payer. When using Service Code Capture and Professional Billing, patient and billing information is fully secure, and kept private throughout the workflow. For more information, please contact ServiceCodeCapture@ahs.ca; for NP-specific billing questions, contact Provincial NP Services at advancedpracticenursing@ahs.ca.
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