The system, named Spheris after its Franklin, Tenn.-based vendor, was outlined at a meeting of deputy chiefs and at-large medical board members on Nov. 12 by Jerry Shefren, vice president for ambulatory care, and Kevin Tabb, chief medical information officer. [See President’s column for more about the meeting].
The system combines dictation and transcription systems under a single umbrella, sparing the hospital and users the inefficiency of managing multiple vendors. Turnaround time for editing of dictation and signature will be substantially reduced — 2 hours for stat, 12 hours for urgent and 24 hours for routine, Tabb said.
Physicians may dictate H&Ps and notes into a handheld device. Transcriptionists will produce web-based notes that may be signed or edited at most web-enabled computers.
The system will automatically generate letters to referral physicians for editing and signature. At least initially, this service will be available only for patients in faculty-operated clinics, but Tabb said the service might be made available through the vendor to the entire medical staff in their own private clinics and offices after full phase-in is completed.
Physicians will be contacted through their respective services for “just-in-time” training sessions before the transition.
Voice recognition software may also be offered later, but Medical Staff president Kent Garman conceded that the technology for this service isn’t ready.
Spheris is designed to be fully compatible with the Epic Electronic Medical Record, scheduled for activation in 2008.
For further information, contact Tabb, Ktabb@stanfordmed.org, or Kathy Lee, senior clinical planning specialist, katlee@stanfordmed.org
