Orthotown June 2017 - 17

bentwire

UCLA, I hear what you are saying, but we are a large, multioffice practice that spends so
much time tracking down random charts that the increase in efficiency for us will mainly be due
to the fact that we will no longer have to track down charts.
While I am at the chair the assistant can make a few notes, which doesn't take much time.
Entering the notes into the computer will take some time, but eliminating the paper chart will
save us time on the whole because we will not spend so much time searching for charts. The
charts will also be available at all times at all offices, so we don't have situations where a patient
comes to a certain office but their paper chart is located in another.
We have digital photos and radiographs, but plaster models and paper charts.
Thank you for the comments so far! I know in the end we will have to adapt things to fit the
particular situation in our practice, but it's great to hear different ideas from ortho Townies. ■

Member Since: 5/29/08
Post: 8 of 34

4/26/2016

LizzyOrtho

We recently switched from paper charts to computers (Edge), and also struggled with where
to put the computers. Right now we have three in the center bay (with five chairs) that we share.
(Two are Microsoft Surfaces, so we can move them around.) We just switched over in March and
the problem now is the added 2 to 3 minutes it takes to go to the computer, pull up the patient's
chart, and enter in the note. It sounds silly, but those minutes really add up when the next patient
is sitting there staring at you. We also haven't yet figured out what to do about reading the previous
visit's notes-I've been asking the assistants to make sure they open the patient's chart and have
it front and center on one of the computers before they tell me the patient is ready for me. It's
been a process, but hopefully it will get easier soon!
Anyway, it will be a transition, but it's worth it! It's so much more convenient to have everything
in the computers. ■

Member Since: 9/28/14
Post: 8 of 34

4/26/2016

I've used paper charts ever since I completed my ortho residency in 2001. My ortho program
trained me to hand-trace cephs and write notes on paper charts. All the chain offices that I
worked (and work) at use paper charts. It's incredibly efficient because I can write much faster
than I can type.
When I started my own office in 2006, I decided to use the paper chart system that I have
grown comfortable with. Not having to rely on outside tech support and being completely
independent are huge pluses. An entire two-year treatment can be easily viewed in one or two
sheets of paper. It takes me less than a minute to write the tx note for each appointment. Here
is a sample of my paper chart:

ucla98
Member Since: 9/28/07
Post: 10 and 11 of 34

This is just a sample. I never use Class II elastics on a NiTi wire.
I also work for two busy chain offices that see 60-80 patients a day. Like your offices, they
still use paper charts and pan+ceph films but keep the patient's photos in a computer. I wish
they'd just print out the photos like what they did before. Every time I want to review the patient's
initial photos, I had to waste a good five minutes to get the computer (because it's too damn
slow) to display the photos.
At my own offices, we never have lost-chart problems. It's my staff's job to make sure the charts

orthotown.com \\ JUNE 2017

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