The OutSmart Interface

The main OutSmart interface is the framework within which the EMR is presented. It consists of the Application Header Bar, and the Content Area.

The Application Header Bar

The Application Header Bar is located at the top of every page in the EMR, and includes the Main Navigation Menu, the Search Bar, and and the Quick Access icons.

The Application Header Bar is located at the top of every page of the EMR.


Main Navigation Menu

The Main Navigation Menu gives you access to all the principal pages within the EMR, as well as quick access to some inner pages. To access the inner pages, click on the ‘down arrow’ to the right of the main options to open a submenu of inner pages.

The Main Navigation Menu has links to main pages as well as inner pages

Header Search Bar

The Search Bar is located in the center of the Application Header Bar. To use the search, first select the scope of your search from the drop-down menu, and then type in the search term and press enter.

Step 1: Select the search scope first, before entering your search term.
Step 2: Once you select your scope, then type in your search term and press enter. This will return some search results, and available search actions.

As of the writing of this article, there are currently five search scopes available:

  • Patients
  • Documents
  • Appointments
  • Soap Charts (practitioners) / Treatment Plans (admin)
  • SmartForms

Each of the above scopes provide different search actions once you have retrieved some results.

Patient Search Actions

The Patient Search is a powerful tool that provides some functionality that is not available anywhere else in the application. The actions you can take on your patient search results will be different based on whether you are logged in as a practitioner, or an admin.

When logged in as a practitioner, the search results will return any patient that you are connected to across all of your offices, as well as all patients of the current clinic you are logged into. This means that you will be able to search for clinic patient records which are not connected to you yet, and then connect those records to you when needed. This functionality is very helpful in collaborative clinic environments where you may need access to a clinic’s patient record even if that patient has not specifically book an appointment with you.

Note that all connections made in our EMR are logged in the audit trail for that patient record, and are revealed when an audit is performed. Please do not connect yourself to patient records unless you have justifiable cause to do so.

Example 1: Search result where you (practitioner) is not connected to the patient.

The above image, Example 1, shows a situation where you (practitioner) are not connected to the patient record returned in the search. You can then click on “Connect to this patient” to connect to that record, and gain access to the Patient Workspace for that patient.

Example 2: A patient record that you (practitioner) are connected to. Here we see the additional information available when you click on “More Info”

In the above image, Example 2, we can see a search result for a patient record that you (practitioner) are connected to. In the case of Example 2, this is what you would see after clicking on “More Info” after the search result is returned. More info gives you access to some patient demographic information. It also gives you access to connect or disconnect this patient from you in some of your other offices.

Example 3: When an admin is logged in, the actions available are different. Here we see a search result returned within an admin account for a patient that is not part of the current office.

In the above image, Example 3, we see a search result returned when logged into an admin account for a patient that is not connected to the currently logged in office. However, the patient IS connected to ANOTHER office that the admin is also connected to. This allows the admin to connect this patient from another office into the current office. This is helpful when admin staff are booking patients across multiple clinic locations. If a patient has been going to one clinic location, but now wants to see a practitioner at another location, the admin staff can connect the same patient record to another location using the search tools.

Example 4: Admin accounts have the option of connecting a patient to a specific practitioner at any of the offices that they (the admin) is a part of. This simplifies connecting the patient record to the right practitioner for clinics that have multiple locations.

In the above image, Example 4, an Admin account has the ability to connect a patient record to any specific practitioner at any location that the admin is connected to. This helps when the admin is responsible for managing patients across multiple clinic locations.

Document Search Actions

When performing a document search, practitioners will have access to all their documents across all their patients and office locations. Admins will have access to all documents for all practitioners at their clinic.

Admins will NOT have access to documents for specific patients that are not connected to any office the admin is a part of, even if that document relates to a practitioner in the admin’s clinic. This ensure that the admin staff never have access to documents pertaining to patients that are not specifically clients of the current clinic, or any other clinic the admin is a part of.

Document search results – you can click on the document to view it.

In the Document Search Results, you can click on the document name to view it. Only PDF and image documents can be opened within the browser. Clicking on a document with a different format will allow you to download it and view it locally.

Appointment Search Actions

The Appointment Search will allow both practitioners and admins to search through the entire clinic calendar and locate the same events that they normally would be able to locate on the calendar itself. This means that admin staff can search for all events booked at the clinic, while practitioners can search for all events booked at the clinic that they have permission to view.

Sample Appointment Search Results

The above image shows sample results from an appointment search. Note that the search will only return patient appointments, and will not return non-patient events like breaks, vacations, or meetings.

SOAP Charts or Treatment Plans Search Actions

The SOAP Chart or Treatment Plan Search will return a list of chart that match the search criteria.

When a Practitioner is conducting the search, the system will search through all charts authored by that practitioner, and will attempt to locate the search term throughout the chart properties or the chart notes. For example, searching for “headache” will return a list of all chart where that word appears anywhere in the chart.

When an Admin is logged in, the search will return all charts created by any practitioner at the current office, however the search will be limited to sections of the chart that would normally appear in the treatment plan. For example, searching for “headache” will display a list of charts where that word is mentioned in the treatment plan. But it will not return any charts where the word is only mentioned as a chief concern, for example.

SOAP Chart Search results for “vitamin”.

The actions that can be taken on search results are also different between practitioners and Admin.

Practitioners can View the chart, View the treatment plan, or Edit / Unlock the chart. Admins can only View the treatment plan.

SmartForms Search Actions

Similar to the SOAP Chart Search, the SmartForms Search will produce a list of all SmartForms associated to the logged in practitioner if you are logged in as a practitioner. If you are logged in as Admin, the results will include all SmartForms associated with the current clinic and all practitioners at the clinic.

The search term will be matched across any answers provided in the SmartForm, as well as the subject patient and the practitioner involved.

Practitioners and Admin have identical priviledges on SmartForms. They can View or Edit any of the SmartForms returned by the search results.

The Quick Access Icons

Quick Access Icons, from left to right: User Menu, Documents, Calendar, Task List, Scratch Pad

The Quick Access Icons allow you to gain access to functionality that is needed wherever you are in OutSmart. Whether you are charting, creating an invoice, or updating demographics, you may always need quick access to the features availabe in the Quick Access Icons.

User Menu

User Menu gives you access to common account activities

The User Menu give you access to some common account activities, like changing offices or logging out of your account. It will also show you what kind of account you are logged into, and which office you are currently logged into.

Documents

Documents

The Documents icon gives you access to your documents area which hosts all your uploaded documents and faxes.

Calendar

Calendar

The Calendar Icon will give you access to your calendar for scheduling patient appointments and other events.

Task List

Task List

The Task List icon gives you access to a simple to-do list feature.

Messenger

Messenger

The Messenger icon will open up an in-office messenger you can use to communicate with your staff.

Scratch Pad

Scratch Pad (Practitioners only)

The Scratch Pad is a feature that is only available when logged in as a practitioner. It provide a safe place to enter information about your practice or specific patient notes which are not considered part of the medical record. This area is not shared with anyone and will not be part of any audit package.

The Content Area

Underneath the Application Header is the Content Area. This is where the all the various pages in OutSmart will be displayed.

The Content Area is everything under the Application Header Bar.