INTEGRATING EMR SCHEDULING IN GAMMA KNIFE.

Significance & Background: Gamma Knife requires precise coordination of physicians, nurses, imaging, physics, and treatment resources. Historically scheduling relied on manual process, creating inefficiencies, communication gaps, and potential delays in patient care. Integrating Gamma Knife scheduli...

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Publicado en:Oncology Nursing Forum Vol. 53; no. 2; pp. 177 - 179
Autor principal: Knipfer, Brandi
Formato: Journal Article
Publicado: Oncology Nursing Society Mar2026
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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      dt: Mar2026
      vid: 53
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      pub: Oncology Nursing Society
      place: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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        atl: INTEGRATING EMR SCHEDULING IN GAMMA KNIFE.
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        au: Knipfer, Brandi
        affil: BSN, Barnes Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, MO
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      ab: Significance & Background: Gamma Knife requires precise coordination of physicians, nurses, imaging, physics, and treatment resources. Historically scheduling relied on manual process, creating inefficiencies, communication gaps, and potential delays in patient care. Integrating Gamma Knife scheduling into the electronic medical record (EMR) offers opportunity to streamline workflows, improve transparency, and enhance patient access. Purpose: This project aims to implement an EMR-based scheduling process for Gamma Knife procedures to increase efficiency, standardize workflows, and improve interdisciplinary communication. Interventions: A gap analysis was conducted to identify challenges in existing scheduling practices. Interdisciplinary stakeholders, including nursing, radiation oncology leadership, physics, neurosurgery, and IT collaborated to define requirements and design a new workflow. Standardized scheduling templates were developed within the EMR to capture all phases of treatment. Staff were trained on EMR use, and protocols were created to guide appointment sequencing and communication. A pilot phase Incorporated real-time feedback for refinement. Results: The EMR- based process reduced scheduling errors, improved communication across department, and increased transparency of patient scheduling. Early outcomes showed more consistent adherence to treatment timelines, enhanced patient throughput, and improved staff satisfaction. The ability to capture scheduling data also supported leadership in resource allocation and workload. Discussion: Integrating Gamma Knife scheduling into the EMR successfully addressed longstanding inefficiencies in a complex care environment. The intervention fostered stronger interdisciplinary collaboration and improves the overall coordination of care. Ongoing monitoring of metrics such as patient throughput, error rates, and staff feedback will ensure sustain- ability and highlight opportunities for further process improvement. Broader application of this model may benefit other high- acuity oncology services requiring precise, multi-team coordination.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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