Capstone Case: New Century Wellness Group

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Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE)

Computerized physician order entry (CPOE) is the process of a medical professional entering medication orders or other physician instructions electronically instead of on paper charts. A primary benefit of CPOE is that it can help reduce errors related to poor handwriting or transcription of medication orders.

Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS)

A clinical decision support system (CDSS) is a health information technology system that is designed to provide physicians and other health professionals with clinical decision support (CDS), that is, assistance with clinical decision-making tasks.

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Step 1: Understand the problem or Opportunity

I’ve already created the business profile which I’ll then use to identify key managers and users to meet with to describe the project, explain my responsibilities, answer questions, and invite comments.

I’ll then begin to document the business processes and functions that Mr. Jones identified, which were: “scheduling, billing, accounting, and payroll functions of the practice.” In addition, I’ll document the current processes being used today that will/may be replaced by “a system to support the clinical applications of Electronic Medical Records (EMR), Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE), and a Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS)”, if any exist.

Step 2: Define the project Scope and Constraints

To define the project scope and constraints, I’ll create a list with sections called Must Do, Should Do, Could Do, and Won’t Do. This list will ensure that Dr. Jones and the office workers are in agreement regarding what tasks will be accomplished with the new information system and what tasks will not so as to prevent project creep.

This list will contain the business processes that were identified to be made more efficient.

For each process, I will examine constraints and identify their characteristics regarding Present versus Future, Internal versus External, and Mandatory versus Desirable.

Step 3: perform Fact-Finding

I’ll perform fact finding by conducting interviews with the office worker following a series of steps:

1. Determine the people to interview.

2. Establish objectives for the interview.

3. Develop interview questions.

To include benefits perceived and scheduling issues that may arise.

4. Prepare for the interview.

5. Conduct the interview.

6. Document the interview.

7. Evaluate the interview.

I’ll begin each interview as I did during step 1 and describe the project, my role in it, answer any questions and invite comments.

I’ll also review documentation to ensure what I have is up to date, and observe the employees’ operations, which may include watching a worker carry out specific tasks if necessary.

Step 4: Analyze project Usability, Cost, Benefit, and Schedule Data

The information gathered in the fact-finding step should be reviewed carefully before evaluating feasibility. The data found should be summarized and tabulated to highlight key facts. if cost and benefit data was collected, financial analysis using spreadsheets or other tools can be done.

I’ll also develop time and cost estimates for the next phase, which is the requirements modeling task, along with determining what information I’ll need, who to interview and how, and how much it’ll cost to prepare a report with findings and recommendations.

Step 5: Evaluate Feasibility

I’ll use my fact-finding data to determine Operational, Technical, Economic, and Schedule feasibility.

Operational: review of user needs, requirements, and expectations.

Technical: identify the hardware, software, and network resources.

Economic: cost-benefit data for management to consider.

Schedule: stakeholder expectations regarding acceptable timing and completion dates.

Step 6: present results and recommendations to Management

In this step I’d prepare a report for management and present it via a presentation.

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Operational

I will interview the office manager and her support staff to gauge their support for a new business support system to automate their day-to-day functions.

I’ll also interview the medical professionals to gauge their support and understanding of what the new clinical applications (EMR, CPOE, CDSS) will mean to their jobs and interactions with patients.

Between these two groups, I should be able to determine what effect these two new systems will have on the function of their jobs and morale. I’ll also be able to give them knowledge on just how the systems will enable them to work more efficiently and effectively.

A new information system will support the current staff and their plans for future growth.

Technical

I’ll interview the Owners of NCWG to inquire about their current legacy based information system regarding its functionality, recurring maintenance costs, and who currently supports it.

I’ll interview the Office Manager and her staff regarding their interaction with the legacy system along with any manual paper based tasks they currently perform.

Between these two groups I should be able to ascertain what systems and/or processes will be replaced by the new information system along with who will support it into the future.

A new information system and its infrastructure (i.e., hardware, software, and networks) is vital for NCWG to grow and prosper and to expand for future growth opportunities.

Economic

I’ll

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