Electronic Discharge Summaries: Perspectives on National Implementation from Clinicians in Hospital and Primary Care...28th Australian Digital Health and Health Informatics Conference (HIC 2024), August 5–7, 2024, Brisbane, Queensland

This paper describes clinicians’ views on the structure and content of an electronic discharge summary (EDS). A sample EDS template was developed by building on existing Australian guidelines to illustrate some of the proposed elements required for a high-quality clinical document. Surveys were wide...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Studies in Health Technology & Informatics Vol. 318; pp. 90 - 96
Main Authors: ALAMEDDINE, Rozanna, DABLIZ, Racha, MILES, Paul, ECCLESTONE, Rodney, HUGMAN, Andrew
Format: proceedings research tables/charts Journal Article
Published: Sage Publications Inc. 2024
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
Description
Summary:This paper describes clinicians’ views on the structure and content of an electronic discharge summary (EDS). A sample EDS template was developed by building on existing Australian guidelines to illustrate some of the proposed elements required for a high-quality clinical document. Surveys were widely disseminated to gather feedback and perspectives of hospital and primary care clinicians. A pragmatic approach to this study was underpinned by a strong evidence base and informed by implementation science methods. Key themes were identified, including variability in workflow and clinical needs, digital maturity, and digital health literacy of the clinical workforce. Understanding different workflows and priorities between hospital and primary care clinicians was a significant barrier to implementing a high-quality EDS. The strong consensus for change from both hospital and primary care clinicians, however, signaled the workforce's readiness as a potential enabler of high-quality EDS documentation.