app for keeping patient info organized

[Fatalis]

Hey guys, what is a good app for tracking patient's info [for iphone].
I have seen things that uploads automatically with the hospitals system but my hospital does not have wifi. I was looking for an app where I can input all the data while I do an interview, etc so it is all there.
Thanks!

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[swoopyswoop]

since when are smartphones hipaa-compliant devices for storing patient information?

 

[Fatalis]

I mean for writing down notes, etc

 

[swoopyswoop]

so you're planning on pulling out an iPhone while interviewing a patient and typing notes onto it? for anything to be remotely feasible it'd have to have a keyboard/be tablet sized. also, if i were a patient, i would be extremely turned off/offended by a med student typing into a phone while talking to me. just find a small H&P template online and print out a few copies and take notes the old fashioned way. alternatively, enter into the EMR directly if there are computers in the patients rooms.

 

[Fatalis]

thats what I meant; pen and pad while interviewing then a few notes after on iphone to reference

 

[@JackShephard]

There's an app for that:

thats what I meant; pen and pad while interviewing then a few notes after on iphone to reference

Probably not wise. This is like asking what the best shoe laces are for exercising. Focus on learning the diseases - H&P, Ddx, Dx, Tx. The better you know that stuff, the less you have to write - and you definitely don't want to make notes of notes on an iPhone.

 

[redpanda]

3x5" filecards, my friend. It's considered a faux pas to haul the COW into the room to type while you're interviewing the patient.

 

[DrAcula_MD]

Geez people really jumped down your throat for this one. I think I understand what you're asking though. We have to enter patient demographics and diagnoses for every patient we see and enter it online. Is this what you're referring to?

If so, I started out by writing them all down (no patient names so no one needs to start preaching HIPPA at me) on a small notepad after each encounter. Then, had to enter them all when I got home. Huge hassle. I use an iPad now to enter patient demographics and diagnoses. It is very compatible with the system.

Otherwise, I'm not sure of an iPhone app for that. Sorry.

 

[Wordead]

I just used my memo app on my smartphone or tablet - one memo per patient. Made a template before the rotation - things to check / questions to ask, lab section, etc. No identifying info. It's not the most efficient and there should hopefully be a good app, but I never found anything better.

 

[DermViser]

Geez people really jumped down your throat for this one. I think I understand what you're asking though. We have to enter patient demographics and diagnoses for every patient we see and enter it online. Is this what you're referring to?

If so, I started out by writing them all down (no patient names so no one needs to start preaching HIPPA at me) on a small notepad after each encounter. Then, had to enter them all when I got home. Huge hassle. I use an iPad now to enter patient demographics and diagnoses. It is very compatible with the system.

Otherwise, I'm not sure of an iPhone app for that. Sorry.

The reason people are "jumping down [his] throat" is bc it's a major mistake to be carrying ANY patient-related medical data in one's phone deidentified or not. As a student it can get his medical team and med school in big trouble.

 

[DrAcula_MD]

The reason people are "jumping down [his] throat" is bc it's a major mistake to be carrying ANY patient-related medical data in one's phone deidentified or not. As a student it can get his medical team and med school in big trouble.

I find that to be completely false. I attend a well-respected US medical school that INSTRUCTS us to record patient ages, race, gender, and diagnoses because that information has to be documented for the school. I know that many, if not all, medical schools have to do that. Writing down "68 year old white female with osteoporosis and CAD" does not violate their patient confidentiality because it does not contain identifying information such as name, date of birth, etc.

 

[DermViser]

I find that to be completely false. I attend a well-respected US medical school that INSTRUCTS us to record patient ages, race, gender, and diagnoses because that information has to be documented for the school. I know that many, if not all, medical schools have to do that. Refresh yourself on HIPPA, because writing down "68 year old white female with osteoporosis and CAD" does not violate their patient confidentiality.

Genius, there is a difference between recording this information in an iPhone and a computerized patient log for school. I'm not talking at all about HIPAA which if you're going to use as a point, you should probably spell the acronym correctly.

 

[DrAcula_MD]

Genius, there is a difference between recording this information in an iPhone and a computerized patient log for school. I'm not talking at all about HIPAA which if you're going to use as a point, you should probably spell the acronym correctly.

Please excuse me for my typo, it is early. At any rate, you are rude and we will agree to disagree. The difference is I'll do it in a mature way. We have had lengthy lectures and discussions with not only medical school faculty but with hospital personnel about what is acceptable, and that was deemed acceptable as long as there are no identifying factors.

 

[DermViser]

Please excuse me for my typo, it is early. At any rate, you are rude and we will agree to disagree. The difference is I'll do it in a mature way. We have had lengthy lectures and discussions with not only medical school faculty but with hospital personnel about what is acceptable, and that was deemed acceptable as long as there are no identifying factors.

Feel free to enter it in your iPhone and bring it out when you're presenting to your attending. Tell me how it goes, esp. when you tell them your med school said it was ok.

 

[DrAcula_MD]

Feel free to enter it in your iPhone and bring it out when you're presenting to your attending. Tell me how it goes, esp. when you tell them your med school said it was ok.

My attendings have told me to do so as well, they prefer that to me writing it down because they feel it is more secure. I have finished all 6 of my core rotations with no problems whatsoever. Guess it depends on the region, or times are changing.

And like I said, all that is being written down is literally "68 year old white female with osteoporosis and CAD". My memory is decent enough that I don't write an entire H&P into my phone. I present to my attendings with no notes.

 

[DrAcula_MD]

Sorry tried to combine those.

 

[Doctor Bob]

If you want to put "68 year old white female with osteoporosis and CAD" into your phone, there's nothing wrong with that.
And if you want to put all of your notes on your phone/tablet and reference that during rounds, if that's what works best for you then have at it.

However... (and this will be different for everyone)...

I have yet to see an electronic program for a phone/tablet that has the following characteristics
1) Faster than just writing the info by hand on a tracking sheet
2) Customizable to be able to include the information you need for your particular rotation
3) Does not give the patient the sensation that you're texting during the interview

Keeping your stuff organized during 3rd/4th year is a process that everyone goes through and everyone does it differently, based on what works for them. As long as during rounds I don't have to wait in silence while the medical student taps buttons on their phone trying to pull up a notepad app I'm happy. Whether it's electronic or paper, just have the information organized and easily at hand. I have seen the opposite occur many times; the student leafing through half a ream of folded paper from their pocket trying to find the one paper with that patient's info on it.

 

[Fatalis]

If you want to put "68 year old white female with osteoporosis and CAD" into your phone, there's nothing wrong with that.

This is exactly what I was talking about, thanks Doctor Bob and DrAcula_MD for understanding what I meant. I was merely asking for a good app where I can store info like that so I can refer to it while I am recalling cases I have seen and during my studies.

 

[@JackShephard]

However... (and this will be different for everyone)...

I have yet to see an electronic program for a phone/tablet that has the following characteristics
1) Faster than just writing the info by hand on a tracking sheet
2) Customizable to be able to include the information you need for your particular rotation
3) Does not give the patient the sensation that you're texting during the interview

Exactly what I was also trying to get at. I love technology and organization - but like Dr. Bob, I haven't seen anything that works as well as pen/paper.

And many patients do think you are texting even when you are looking at info.

The one physician I know who uses the iPhone to his benefit is to track diagnoses that he has made or missed. He keeps track of the basic patient info and his diagnosis so that he can get feedback on his performance as a physician (not HIPAA compliant, but we all can't be perfect).

As for DrAcula:

Geez people really jumped down your throat for this one.

You finished all your rotations and think saying:

• use pen/paper
• some patients don't like physicians typing into phones during interviews

is jumping down your throat?

Wow.

You have a sheltered medical school / life.

 

[@JackShephard]

This is exactly what I was talking about, thanks Doctor Bob and DrAcula_MD for understanding what I meant. I was merely asking for a good app where I can store info like that so I can refer to it while I am recalling cases I have seen and during my studies.

Virtually any note app can do this. There are note apps on the iPhone and Android. There's evernote which is probably your best tool to organize tons of notes.

 

[SouthernSurgeon]

If you want to put "68 year old white female with osteoporosis and CAD" into your phone, there's nothing wrong with that.
And if you want to put all of your notes on your phone/tablet and reference that during rounds, if that's what works best for you then have at it.

It may not be a "HIPAA violation" - but I know a number of hospitals (mine included) that have an explicit policy that patient information cannot be stored on your mobile device (phone or iPad). We can access our EMR from our phones through a secure network, but we aren't allowed to save anything on the phone.

So even if you are not violating HIPAA, you may well be violating your hospital's policies.

 

[Doctor Bob]

So even if you are not violating HIPAA, you may well be violating your hospital's policies.

Hahaha, well yes. There's "how things should work on average", and there's "how things work at your facility". To the OP, always check with your facility to determine if they have any facility-specific internal rules.

 

[SouthernSurgeon]

Hahaha, well yes. There's "how things should work on average", and there's "how things work at your facility". To the OP, always check with your facility to determine if they have any facility-specific internal rules.

Right. I was just confirming what some have said earlier in the thread. Just because something is deidentified it doesn't necessarily mean it's ok to put it in your phone. HIPAA compliance is a minimum benchmark; for a lot of hospitals their privacy guidelines go well above and beyond that.

 

[Fatalis]

Hahaha, well yes. There's "how things should work on average", and there's "how things work at your facility". To the OP, always check with your facility to determine if they have any facility-specific internal rules.

Will do, thanks!