Does anyone use a rocket notebook for patient interviews?

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SpinDrift

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I thought it might be a more efficient way instead of hand jamming it and then typing it out. If you're unfamiliar with rocket notebooks it allows for handwritten notes to be uploaded to the cloud and then converted to text.

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If it’s getting uploaded to the cloud, probably not hipaa compliant

Obviously people do a ton of things in the hospital that aren’t totally hipaa legal (half the messaging apps teams use…) so you might get away with it but I’d be careful
 
First thing I thought of was HIPPA. You'd likely get serious flak at my hospital. Looks like a really cool invention though, wish it was possible.
 
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I thought it might be a more efficient way instead of hand jamming it and then typing it out. If you're unfamiliar with rocket notebooks it allows for handwritten notes to be uploaded to the cloud and then converted to text.

It's a cool idea to try to streamline your interview with your documentation, but I think it ultimately isn't worth practicing as there are more efficient solutions or else everyone would be using the rocket notebooks. I'm an old soul who has never stopped writing things down, but as I progressed I learned to jot down only a few words with arrows (key dates, medications, diseases, symptoms etc.) and then I derive narratives from those notes. I feel that allows me to focus the most on the patient in front of me first while putting all the necessary details in the note. I used to struggle remembering all the information, but with experience, I learned to relax and instantly my memory got better. The alternative (if you prefer to interview/document simultaneously) is to just bring in a COW (computer on wheels) and type (most can type at least 60 WPM, many can do 130+) as you interview. I do that on call when I have several >2 H&Ps/hr. to write so I can put in admission orders in too while writing the A&P. Writing things down in a neat enough fashion while you are interacting with a patient so you convert it to digital text and copy that into note isn't feasible in my opinion as no one can physically write that fast while simultaneously interacting with the patient. You'll likely have to run through the digital translation again and edit that as your handwritten notes will have flaws that spellcheck would have caught while you were typing. You either sacrifice the quality of the interview, the quality of documentation, or the speed of your work. It may work in medical school when you have 3-4 patients and only write 1-2 H&Ps per day, but afterwards the system may become a hassle. Again, my opinion. Take it with a grain of salt.

Ultimately, find a system and stick to it. My thought is that the Rocket Book solution may work now but you may be forced to abandon it in residency.
 
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It's a cool idea to try to streamline your interview with your documentation, but I think it ultimately isn't worth practicing as there are more efficient solutions or else everyone would be using the rocket notebooks. I'm an old soul who has never stopped writing things down, but as I progressed I learned to jot down only a few words with arrows (key dates, names, etc.) and then I derive narratives from those notes. I feel that allows me to focus the most on the patient in front of me first while putting all the necessary details in the note. The alternative (if you prefer to interview/document simultaneously) is to just bring in a COW (computer on wheels) and type as you interview. I do that on call when I have several >2 H&Ps/hr. to write so I can put in admission orders in too while writing the A&P. Writing things down in a neat enough fashion while you are interacting with a patient so you convert it to digital text and copy that into note isn't feasible in my opinion as no one can physically write that fast while simultaneously interacting with the patient. You'll likely have to run through the digital translation again and edit that as your handwritten notes will have flaws that spellcheck would have caught while you were typing. You either sacrifice the quality of the interview, the quality of documentation, or the speed of your work. It may work in medical school when you have 3-4 patients and only write 1-2 H&Ps per day, but afterwards the system may become a hassle. Again, my opinion. Take it with a grain of salt.

Ultimately, find a system and stick to it. My thought is that the Rocket Book solution may work now but you may be forced to abandon it in residency.
Great feedback! I think you nailed it as far as having to edit the note once it's transferred therefore creating another headache. In theory it sounds good but I think keeping it simple wins out. Anecdotally, I was with a family doc today who has the DAX program, she has each interview recorded on her iphone then they write up the note for her. Flipping amazing but it sets her back 10k a year. Probably worth it.
 
Haven't tried RocketNotebook butbNebo has the best handwriting recognition technology around. Converts to text locally, and you can upload to the cloud or not. It’s free to use locally, and about $11 to upload to the cloud.
 
Haven't tried RocketNotebook butbNebo has the best handwriting recognition technology around. Converts to text locally, and you can upload to the cloud or not. It’s free to use locally, and about $11 to upload to the cloud.
Thanks! I'll check it out.
 
I love my Rocketbooks, but I am not taking patient notes with them. I like them for taking preclinical/didactic notes, and I enjoy using them when I'm in small groups or conferences. OCR is supported.

I would check if you are able to upload them to a secured HIPAA-compliant cloud and whether the transfer can be encrypted. I'm guessing they welcome such suggestions as challenges to their next software upgrade.
 
I love my Rocketbooks, but I am not taking patient notes with them. I like them for taking preclinical/didactic notes, and I enjoy using them when I'm in small groups or conferences. OCR is supported.

I would check if you are able to upload them to a secured HIPAA-compliant cloud and whether the transfer can be encrypted. I'm guessing they welcome such suggestions as challenges to their next software upgrade.
I think you're right. I originally saw rocket notebooks being offered by a residency program in Utah and that sparked my interest. I'll check with the tech dept. and see what they say. I've also recently learned about A.I. scribe services for patient notes and I'm thinking this might be a good direction to go.
 
I think you're right. I originally saw rocket notebooks being offered by a residency program in Utah and that sparked my interest. I'll check with the tech dept. and see what they say. I've also recently learned about A.I. scribe services for patient notes and I'm thinking this might be a good direction to go.
Cool. Please share what you find out. I definitely appreciate the environmental-conscious element of the Rocketbook, not to mention the eraseable gel pens (either thermal or water).
 
Not exactly what you are looking for as it still requires the need to retype the information out but just having a booklit with organized templates keeps it easy enough to recreate or track info while inpatient: https://tinyurl.com/2p97je7a

There is also a company called statenote that makes something called a StatNote Ninja Stick that is just a usb preloaded with templates that can be used in most if not every EHR. I have only tried it out a bit basically similar to epic but can be transported to different facilities with different ehrs.

I would check with as others pointed out if it would be within policy. There are plenty of hippa compliant cloud services so it is possible it would be just fine. I know microsoft teams is hippa compliant for video calls so it is possible that onenote would be as well.


This random website suggests that it can be and the official microsoft website discusses it as well Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) & Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act - Microsoft Compliance
 
I've always just used blank computer paper I stole from the printer and throw it away after my note is done. What would the advantage of the fancy notebook or uploading it be?

If you really wanted to be more organized you could probably print a ton of templates or something and just keep them on you. During my clinical year I progressed from making a full outline every time to just making a little corner at the bottom that says "HPI PMH meds..."etc and then i just chart it off after I asked about it. Or if there are specific questions for a follow-up.
 
This is great! I love using OneNote but I didn't know it was HIPPA compliant, this might be the answer I'm looking for. You've made my day, I'll run this by tech and see if they're okay with it.
 
I've always just used blank computer paper I stole from the printer and throw it away after my note is done. What would the advantage of the fancy notebook or uploading it be?

If you really wanted to be more organized you could probably print a ton of templates or something and just keep them on you. During my clinical year I progressed from making a full outline every time to just making a little corner at the bottom that says "HPI PMH meds..."etc and then i just chart it off after I asked about it. Or if there are specific questions for a follow-up.

This is a variation of what I did. I had a full page, physical print-out H&P template I made. I left liberal room in lots of spaces but made sure everything (including pesky stuff I forget) was on there. It stepped up my H&P game. Gradually, I graduated from it which is always the goal...these days I can envision the paper in my head.
 
I've always just used blank computer paper I stole from the printer and throw it away after my note is done. What would the advantage of the fancy notebook or uploading it be?

If you really wanted to be more organized you could probably print a ton of templates or something and just keep them on you. During my clinical year I progressed from making a full outline every time to just making a little corner at the bottom that says "HPI PMH meds..."etc and then i just chart it off after I asked about it. Or if there are specific questions for a follow-up.
Mainly I wanted a way to be more efficient and I hate typing, plus using paper all the time is a waste. With rocket notebooks you can write the notes on a reusable notebook, snap a pic and it saves it to the cloud and can convert your note to a word document. From there I could make minor corrections, copy and paste to the EMR. But with OneNote I can use the dictate feature and record the entire interaction or convert handwritten notes to a word document. The main question was HIPPA compliance which appears to be resolved. I also know of AI programs that listen to your conversation and then form a note out of it but you have to pay for this service and its fairly expensive.
 
Mainly I wanted a way to be more efficient and I hate typing, plus using paper all the time is a waste. With rocket notebooks you can write the notes on a reusable notebook, snap a pic and it saves it to the cloud and can convert your note to a word document. From there I could make minor corrections, copy and paste to the EMR. But with OneNote I can use the dictate feature and record the entire interaction or convert handwritten notes to a word document. The main question was HIPPA compliance which appears to be resolved. I also know of AI programs that listen to your conversation and then form a note out of it but you have to pay for this service and its fairly expensive.
in my experience the key to improving note efficiency is not really fancy systems like this but rather getting very familiar with your EMR and developing dot phrases and templates that fit into your workflow. or stealing them from other people who have already made them
 
in my experience the key to improving note efficiency is not really fancy systems like this but rather getting very familiar with your EMR and developing dot phrases and templates that fit into your workflow. or stealing them from other people who have already made them
This 100%.
 
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