Strategic Enhancements in MEDITECH Expanse (v2.2.66)
Driving Clinical Efficiency and OperaĒional Excellence
This strategic MEDITECH Expanse update delivers tangible value across the organization. Included are features that enhance patient care and operational performance by refining clinician workflows, strengthening administrative oversight, improving data management, and adding specialized functionality for Canadian healthcare.
1.0 Major Advancements in Core Clinical Workflows
Optimizing core clinical workflows is paramount to reducing administrative burden, improving patient safety, and increasing documentation accuracy.
1.1 Enhancing Medication and Infusion Management
● Future Activation of Infusion Orders (ORD-113191): Clinicians can schedule infusion orders to activate at a specific future date and time, providing greater control and facilitating advanced planning.
● Dose Management in Acute Discharge (ORD-116590): Integrated into the Web Acute Discharge process, this ensures complex medication protocols (e.g., warfarin) are reconciled and reviewed during patient transitions, improving medication safety.
● Safer Batch Reffills (ORD-116821): A new alert system warns providers when refilling a prescription with a pre-defined duration with a new day's supply, preventing prescribing errors.
● Enhanced Safeguards for Personal Order Sets (ORD-117942): Prevents minor pre-selection edits to master sets from overwriting personalized versions, preserving clinician customizations while ensuring significant clinical updates propagate.
● Continuing Care e-Prescribing (CCeRx)(ORD-85638): Home medication reconciliation now automatically inserts the correct dose unit and prompts for required dose and frequency, preventing incomplete pharmacy orders.
1.2 Streamlining Clinical Documentation and Problem List Management
● Problem List Evolution (DOC-21141): A new "Transition" function allows clinicians to evolve a patient's problem to a more accurate concept while preserving complete historical context.
● Optimized Assessment and Plan (A&P) Display (DOC-40817): Improved font, indentation, and data display options make these critical sections easier to read and interpret.
● Expanded Documentation Typicals (DOC-50672): Users can now create and apply "Typicals" (pre-defined text templates) for "Patient Level Plan" and "Patient Instructions" fields, streamlining documentation.
2.0 Tailored Enhancements for Canadian Healthcare Operations
This update delivers critical, Canada-only features designed to improve compliance, safety, and operational efficiency within unique Canadian healthcare workflows.
Enhancement |
Strategic Impact for Canadian Hospitals |
Long-Term Care Facility (LTCF) Updates (CLIN-217831): Introduces the IRRS (Integrated interRAI Reporting System) Long Term Care Form (LTCF) standardized assessment and submission tool used for evaluating the needs of people in chronic care and nursing home settings. |
This standardized assessment and submission tool helps Canadian hospitals streamline chronic care and nursing home patient evaluations, improving care coordination and data submission to provincial health authorities. |
Safer e-Prescribing Defaults (ORD-116912): System defaults prescription orders to "Print" instead of "Transmit" when no associated pharmacy is on file. |
Reduces transmission errors and failed prescriptions, improving patient safety and pharmacy-provider communication. |
Clearer Reffill Denial Status (ORD-100369): Denied unsolicited refill requests now clearly display their final status in the provider's completed task list. |
Provides a clearer, more definitive audit trail for prescription management, improving accountability and workflow transparency. |
Enhanced LTCF Submission Management (CLIN-287387): A refresh button has been added to the IRRS Submission Management screens used in Long-Term Care Facilities. |
Streamlines workflow for LTCF staff managing submissions, reducing clicks and improving efficiency. |
New "Active-R" Status for LTCF Transfers (CLIN-283759): Receiving Transfers rejected by CIHI are automatically assigned a new "Active-R" status. |
Provides an immediate and clear visual indicator of rejected submissions, allowing staff to prioritize and address issues. |
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Safer e-Prescribing Defaults (ORD-116912): Prescription orders default to "Print" instead |
Reduces prescription errors and improves workflow by |
of "Transmit" for patients without an associated pharmacy, preventing errors |
minimizing medication delays and safety risks. |
|
Automatic Eligibility Request (ORD-89928): A new eligibility request is triggered when a patient's Health Care Number changes, maintaining data accuracy. |
Automated eligibility updates based on Health Care Number changes ensure accurate patient data, reducing administrative overhead. |
3.0 Streamlining Administrative and Operational Tasks
Modernizations improve data access, enhance user efficiency in non-clinical workflows, and create a more flexible scheduling environment.
3.1. Modernizing Patient Scheduling and Interoperability
● AI-Powered No-Show Predictions (ADMIN-130143): Leverages AI to proactively identify high-risk patients for no-shows, allowing for targeted intervention strategies to reduce revenue loss.
● Improved Interoperability via FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources) APIs
○ The FHIR Scheduling API allows integrated third-party systems to change an appointment's status from "Pending" to "Booked” (ADMIN-140820).
○ Third-party systems to create pending appointments that file to a waitlist (ADMIN-137960).
○ Changing an appointment's date and time without full cancellation (ADMIN-135002).
○ Returning a larger set of available appointment times (ADMIN-136872).
○ Patients to reschedule directly from confirmation texts (ADMIN-137180).
3.2. Enhancing User Effficiency and Data Management
Key Operational Enhancements |
Direct Beneffit |
Streamlined Point of Care Sign-On (CLIN-285345, CLIN-285116) |
Reduces login time for Phlebotomy and other Point of Care users by allowing them to save and auto-load session values. |
CSV Export for Workload Reports (WKD-12914) |
Allows the Workload Open Item Counter Report to be exported in CSV format for easier data analysis. |
Customizable Referral Workflow Statuses (ADMIN-132720) |
Enables creation of custom statuses in the Referral Management Dashboard. |
Improved Transport Request Visibility (CLIN-280758) |
New 'Transport Requests All' data item includes cancelled and completed requests for 60 minutes, improving patient throughput. |
Expanded Workload Cancellation (WKD-13393) |
Provides administrators complete control over task management by enabling cancellation of all workload item types. |
4.0 Foundational Improvements in System Security and Performance
Critical updates strengthen the system's foundation, ensuring a more resilient and secure environment.
● Enhanced System Security (RPT-223453, CLIN-279989, CM-26882, CLIN-281076): Downloadable reports are now generated as industry-standard .zip files instead of .exe files, reducing security risks.
● Increased Data Resiliency (RPT-221628): Enhancements to Data Repository's File Server Logging introduce a new backup log recovery method and proactive alert checks, achieving near-zero data loss.
● Improved Interface Performance (IOP-52355, IOP-52241): New parameters in the Message Generator reduce processing load on the file server by skipping temporary file creation and allowing temporary logging for troubleshooting.
Explore recently released and in-development solutions through the Expanse-Early Adopter Opportunities page!