Eyeworld

July 2017 • Ophthalmology Business 9 questionnaires about their symptoms and how they are coping with them at each visit to be able to see how functional status improves over time with treatments," Dr. Woodward said. Clinics across Michigan Med- icine at the University of Michi- gan are piloting pre-appointment questionnaires that are completed on tablets, Dr. Woodward said. The answers to questions, which include ones tailored to the clinic as well as some about the patient's symptoms, will be uploaded and viewable from the patient's medical record. "This is a pathway I see as very feasible for resolving this disconnect in the near future; the infrastructure is already there," Dr. Woodward said of the pilot program in a press release statement. becomes much more imperative. The data captured in the electronic health record, if it is highly accurate, can be used to improve the quality of care that we deliver in a way that data captured on disparate paper charts never made possible." Some of the disconnect between patients' self-reported symptoms and what was on their medical records could mean that doctors are unaware of important symptoms. Dr. Wood- ward said for their study, they felt at least a modest degree of matching be- tween the two sources was important. "If we want to fully capture patient symptoms and other patient- centered outcome measures like quality of life and function, patients could complete questionnaires as part of every visit. Instead of just recording patients' height, weight, blood pressure, and lab work at each visit, patients would fill out those issues will continue regardless of whether notes are taken on paper or in an electronic health record," said Maria Woodward, MD, MSc, assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. "However, in the era of paper charts, the purpose of a medical record in a single physi- cian's office is so that the physician can document the history of the illness and the diagnosis and plan for each patient and ensure the ability to follow the patient's progress. The purpose of the medical record is not to be a compendium of information to facilitate the measurement of the quality of care delivered. Because the electronic health record allows re- searchers, payers, and administrators to extract information in a way that has never been previously possible, the implications of capturing pa- tient data in the most accurate way The biggest costs are covered by your insurance, including the oper- ating room, anesthesia fees, fees for my surgery, nursing, and supplies. All those add up to about $_____ per eye, covered by insurance. Add- ing a high-tech implant adds about $____ per eye that is not covered by any insurance. It's optional. Not ev- eryone can afford this. About three out of four of our patients do choose the laser/high-tech implant, and our staff can tell you about financing options that make it as affordable as a few dollars a day. 9. Tell patients what you would do. Although patients should be part of their care decision, they want to know what you advise as best for their long-term visual needs. Make sure to tell them. 10. Follow up on the outcome. You want to make sure they are happy postoperatively, but if they are not, you need to step in to correct it. Dr. Hovanesian shared the story of a 62-year-old female accountant who had cataract surgery with a multifo- cal IOL. She saw her community op- tometrist at 4 months postop but did not have any further treatment. At 6 months, an electronic follow-up us- ing MDbackline software found that she was dissatisfied with her vision. As it turned out, she had posterior capsule opacification. Once that was treated, the patient was happy with her vision and referred friends. "The patients you treat are ambassadors to others," he said. OB Editors' note: Mr. Corcoran and Dr. Hardten have no financial interests re- lated to their comments. Dr. Hovanesian is the founder of MDbackline (Laguna Hills, California). Contact information Corcoran: kcorcoran@corcoranccg.com Hardten: drhardten@mneye.com Hovanesian: johnhova@gmail.com continued from page 7 continued on page 10 the chart

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