Advantages of Integrating Electronic Lab Ordering with EHR

One of the notable difficulties faced by doctors today is giving managing Lab Orders electronically. Some doctors who have embraced Electronic Health Records (EHR) find that they do not have an automated lab ordering capability in their system.

Integrated Electronic Lab Ordering with EHR

EHR platforms with integrated electronic lab ordering can:

Clear, complete, logical

Electronic lab orders slash down on mistakes simply by being combined into a laboratory's LIS, with no further human input needed. These orders are likely far more logical than paper forms; there is no writing to read, and there are no changes in the kind of data submitted from provider to provider.

There are however numerous challenges. For example, inadequate lab results can introduce almost as many obstacles as imperfect human input since laboratories frequently face fragmented ways to how data is sent from different EHR systems. Mixing with systems that don't give the correct data can cost the laboratory more time and cash attempting to recover the data from the doctor and re-inputting the accurate data into the LIS.

When the EHR automates most of the data involved in a lab order, the physician has to do only some things to define additional information required, decreasing the possibility of failure upfront. The EHR can add extra functionality to assure that human error on the part of the physician is avoided, such as blocking the wrong labs or duplicate labs from being posted.

Potential for the tomorrow

The greatest possible gains for usability and effectiveness in EHR lab orders are yet to come, for both the physicians and the patient. Clinical decision support can give doctors real-time warnings and direction about which tests are needed for their patient group. For example, patients with specific vitals and early diagnoses might be the best candidates to get a glucose test for diabetes. For both the doctor and the laboratory, the time used on communications can be reduced with real-time updates to the EHR.