Remote Data Access

SYSTOC 7.1 Ease of Use Features

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The Occupational Health Tracker frequently contains articles that highlight ways in which clinic management can improve operations. The upcoming release of SYSTOC 7.1 early in 2002 is an event worth noting for our readers because of the system’s emphasis on moving a patient efficiently through the visit, helping to ensure that the appropriate procedure is followed, that every provided service is captured, and that the patient is released with a return appointment (if needed), comprehensive instructions, and timely documentation for the employer.

Company president Michael Keller explains, "SYSTOC 7.1 represents a new approach in the use of practice management software in occupational healthcare. The clinic management can establish individual procedures for client companies and protocols for various types of injuries. These guide the staff’s activity and are assimilated into the clinic’s workflow, allowing information to be entered or accessed in ‘real time’ by any authorized individual, from clerical personnel to medical staff. The result is improved consistency, quality, and both patient and company satisfaction."

To make this "real time" information possible, clinic management predefines most services that the clinic offers. This streamlines the execution of the patient visit, and allows each client company’s preferences for the treatment of its injured employees to be communicated to healthcare providers.

Medical personnel can quickly select medications, patient restrictions, and instructions, making minor changes as needed to fit the circumstances. By selecting pre-defined information, the possibility of data entry errors is significantly reduced and the speed, consistency, and overall effectiveness of the system is greatly improved. Staff can also electronically note additional services and supplies used during the visit, as well as indicate the person providing the service, enabling the clinic to successfully track every chargeable item (see Figure 1).

Another huge time-saver is the use of optional templates as the basis of the medical record, which makes it possible to avoid the expense and delay of outside transcription. The physician can choose a template that corresponds to the type of injury and complete it in just a few moments by checking off the results of the examination, adding additional comments as desired. (The contents of the template are entirely under the clinic’s control, and interested physicians can contribute to the template designs, ensuring that they meet his or her needs.) Using this option, the medical record can be ready by the time the patient is discharged.

By using forms printed by SYSTOC at the time of the patient visit, the clinic can significantly reduce its reliance on pre-printed forms, and can customize its forms to the needs of particular clients. Some forms can be eliminated entirely. For example, work restrictions can be quickly chosen and customized on-screen. Similarly, standardized medication instructions can be selected, immediately customized if needed, and printed before the patient leaves the building. The charge sheet is also unnecessary, as the staff can pick the services provided right on the computer screen. The process of printing forms that are required, such as First Report of Injury, can be automated by specifying what is needed when defining the procedure for an injury visit.

Information that is likely to be needed for an injury or illness visit is consolidated onto one screen (see Figure 2).

This screen helps the physician quickly review or change the current work status, restrictions, ICD-9 codes, medical history, etc. The vitals, immunizations, injury history, and medications are also combined into one screen, which is just one click from the Visit screen (see Figure 3).

Of course, not all visits are injury-related. SYSTOC also handles audiograms, breath alcohol, TB, hepatitis, drug screening, physical exams, and many other visit types. Interfaces for certain types of audiogram and BAT equipment to import test results directly into SYSTOC come standard in the new version at no additional charge. Data entry screens are designed to assist in complying with federal regulations. SYSTOC makes it simple to set up recall reminders for a series of linked, timed events, to ensure that each step in any immunization process is completed.

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The ability to quickly and easily add orders to appointments as they progress virtually assures that all services and supplies will be billed. Since the person providing each service is attached to the completed order, clinics that base physician compensation on actual billed activity have an easy tracking mechanism for what services each physician provides.

SYSTOC’s comprehensive billing functionality also helps ensure that every invoice is correctly routed, and printed on the right form, for the workers’ comp insurance adjuster, client company, private patient insurer or guarantor’s insurer, as circumstances dictate. And when the bill is for a screening service rather than an injury, SYSTOC accommodates multiple patients on one company invoice. To help avoid providing services to patients or companies that are severely in arrears, SYSTOC 7.1 can even store user-defined messages that appear on the registration screen when the patient or company calls for an appointment, such as "Owes money on a past due account."

Invoices can be printed and mailed, but it is also possible to transmit invoices and supporting medical records in electronic format. Through a clearinghouse, invoices can be delivered electronically or conveyed to another site to be printed and mailed from that location. In either event, this is another opportunity to move one step closer to paperless office functionality.

A clinic may need to deal with a number of outstanding invoices in various stages of collection. With SYSTOC, invoices can be selected for collection activity based on various criteria and moved from one collection stage to the next as a group (see Figure 4). Standard collection letters can be sent to the responsible party for every invoice in each group. If needed, individual collection letters can be edited before the batch of collection letters is printed.

Case Management

Comprehensive case management tools are available in SYSTOC 7.1. When the physician places a worker on restricted activity or off work, the case manager is flagged to follow up with the company. Case managers can review their cases easily, maintain their own notes on the case, and review the physician’s notes to them.

SYSTOC 7.1 supports various Internet access options at no additional charge. Client companies who have received prior approval and appropriate security restrictions from the clinic can view the results of their employees’ treatments or drug tests. Similarly, Emergency Room personnel can use the Internet to access company-specific or general procedures when an injured employee seeks after-hours treatment. This helps ensure that company treatment preferences are accessible, no matter when an injury occurs.

Clinics that use the SYSTOC Healthcare Network’s drug testing services can use the Internet to access the status of samples sent to Clinical Reference Laboratory for testing.

Finally, the entire SYSTOC operation can run over the Internet, if the clinic’s web-related hardware is sufficiently robust. This option, called webSYSTOC, is available to any SYSTOC client at no additional charge.

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SYSTOC 7.1 Ease of Use Features

REAL TIME FUNCTIONALITY: SYSTOC 7.1 reduces the amount of data entry done from paper forms, thereby reducing the possibility of data entry errors. Processing patient paperwork is so fast and easy that most of it can be completed while the patient is on-site. It is possible to complete preliminary data entry and print out work restrictions and instructions for taking medication and injury care before the patient leaves the building.

CUSTOM FORM CAPABILITY: When forms are required, you can custom-design them and include patient-identifying headers, eliminating the need to use labels. Forms can be printed with the flow sheet prior to each workday. Forms can be changed whenever revisions are necessary, without waiting until existing inventories of pre-printed forms are depleted.

FLEXIBLE REPORT PARAMETERS: All reports provide a wide range of user-selected parameters, resulting in standard reports that are virtually customized, based on your selections. Depending on the parameter, values may be typed in, selected from drop down lists, or selected through a lookup capability.

REPORT DRILL-DOWN: A report "tree" allows you to select and jump to specific parts of the report on screen. Some reports provide additional drill down capabilities, allowing you to isolate and view, or even print, company- or patient-specific data.

CLINIC DEFINED TASKS: Tasks are the basic building blocks of orders. Each task is user-defined, and then grouped by user-specified categories, making selection of appropriate orders easier.

ACCESS ORDERS EASILY: Orders are now so easy to add that every single visit activity should be captured for accurate billing by front desk personnel, billing, and medical staff. This virtually assures that all services and supplies will be billed.

ADAPTABLE RECALL FUNCTIONALITY: A recall series can be established for any series of events that occurs on a predetermined schedule.

FLEXIBLE BILLING OPTIONS: There is virtually infinite control over where an invoice is sent: to the client company or any department in it, the WC insurer, the patient, the patient’s own insurer, an alternate subscriber’s insurance, to a laboratory, etc. Facilities with multiple servicing locations can combine locations onto one invoice or keep them separate.

BLOOD-BORNE PATHOGEN EXPOSURES: Reporting a sharps incident is simplified with SYSTOC’s ability to store all required information on both exposures and non-exposures, including brand of device, method of exposure, and other critical data.

AUXILIARY SERVICES: When auxiliary testing or x-rays are needed, clinicians will be able to see on screen that an auxiliary service has been ordered, and which exam room they should visit to draw blood, pick up the patient for x-rays, etc.

Contact for More Information

It is impossible to cover all the system’s capabilities in a single article. If you would like additional information, or have specific questions regarding any of the capabilities mentioned above, contact Amanda Labrie, SYSTOC Sales Coordinator, at 800.444.8432, or send e-mail to amanda.labrie@systoc.com. Current SYSTOC customers who are interested in upgrading to this version as soon as the product is available should e-mail 7.1upgrade@systoc.com. 

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