title: MediSign: using a web-based SignOut System to improve provider identification.
abstract: Continuity of care necessitates communication between the primary providers of inpatient and outpatient care. Communication requires identification of providers in addition to clinical information. We have constructed a web-based SignOut System to improve provider identification. The web-based SignOut System correctly identified the provider for 100% (34/34) of patients in 1997 and 93% (37/40) of patients in 1998. The hospital bed census correctly identified the attending provider for 50% (17/34) of patients in 1997 and 73% (29/40) in 1998. When analyzed by attending type (i.e., service and private,) the SignOut System correctly identified 86% of service providers in contrast to the hospital bed census that correctly identified 57% of service providers. Both the SignOut System (100%) and the hospital bed census (95%) had superior results in identifying private attendings. The web-based technology provides a familiar user interface and ubiquitous workstation access.
authors.affiliation: Center for Medical Informatics, Mount Sinai Medical Center, NY, NY, USA.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kannry
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moore
mesh_terms: D001509:Bed Occupancy; D003142:Communication; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006751:Hospital Information Systems; D018578:Hospital-Physician Relations; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008485:Medical Audit; D008505:Medical Staff, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010351:Patient Discharge; D010355:Patient Identification Systems; D010821:Physicians, Family / Q000145:classification; D012308:Risk Management; D014584:User-Computer Interface