TooManyClicks

Here's a nice high-res mockup of the sketch I ...

2011-12-02T11:26:25.153-06:00

Here's a nice high-res mockup of the sketch I did orignally. Thanks to Janey Barnes and her graphic designer colleague whose name I can't find right now.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/XxKihs9A4mGEPoYdEiLwKNMTjNZETYmyPJy0liipFm0?feat=directlink

It's an innovative idea for the structure.

2011-09-29T01:41:03.995-05:00

It's an innovative idea for the structure.

What a concept! I am a Rn and TOTALLY agree. Wish...

2011-08-26T09:27:19.319-05:00

What a concept! I am a Rn and TOTALLY agree. Wish all MD's would unite and insurance commissioners for the states would all listen.

In case you might be interested in Target's Cl...

2011-05-09T14:40:20.617-05:00

In case you might be interested in Target's ClearRX design efforts, here are a few links.

Perhaps the 'oral' shouldn't be remove...

2011-05-09T14:33:03.384-05:00

Perhaps the 'oral' shouldn't be removed because it suggests
where to put it. Surely, we don't want a suppository going in one's mouth :)

Take it one step farther, and translate BID into patient-friendly terms.

In general, this make-over is a great example of how we can make simple little changes to reduce the cognitive load on users.

I agree; can we make it happen?

2011-03-23T08:33:09.632-05:00

I agree; can we make it happen?

Good instruction. Hadn't used the navigation ...

2011-03-17T11:39:52.796-05:00

Good instruction. Hadn't used the navigation buttons before. Teach us more!

Our system (V.A.'s CPRS) uses all caps for dru...

2010-12-10T23:21:50.615-06:00

Our system (V.A.'s CPRS) uses all caps for drug names, which is irritating, but one particular drug is in the database as MetFORMIN, which makes it appear out of alphabetical order sometimes (after METOPROLOL or METHOTREXATE). Not sure if this is a local, regional, or national issue.

Man, really want to know how can you be that smart...

2010-11-22T19:05:19.287-06:00

Man, really want to know how can you be that smart, lol...great read, thanks.

Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog a...

2010-11-22T01:30:19.217-06:00

Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I have really enjoyed browsing your blog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!

2010-10-25T23:00:03.018-05:00

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

2010-07-31T20:03:13.681-05:00

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

Thanks for the info and article.

2010-05-19T07:45:20.896-05:00

Thanks for the info and article.

Very intriguing. I agree, context and proximity ar...

2010-04-15T19:36:43.957-05:00

Very intriguing. I agree, context and proximity are paramount. Your idea reminds me of how the widget platforms like netvibes and iGoogle have a preferences function for each widget. I can't think of any other examples of applications that do something similar.

By the way, I like the mock-ups. It looks like you might be using balsamiq. I use that app and love it! It's the best software I've every used. I think it's a beautiful thing to employ a usable application to create other usable applications.

That's a very interesting idea. However, does ...

2010-04-15T19:28:06.364-05:00

That's a very interesting idea. However, does it not require you to visit the patient's record? So this could eliminate calls for patients that you see on a regular basis, but what about those whom you don't see frequently? If you write me a 3 months script today, with no refills, but you don't plan to see me for 1 year, wouldn't I be inclined to ask for a refill 3 months from now? Or does this scenario not usually happen? I know personally it's happened to me as a patient. Over the course of 1 year I asked for refills 3 separate times without ever returning to the office. Perhaps my MD should have either provided more refills or schedule a follow-up appointment earlier? These work-flow questions are fascinating.

Great post. I wasn't aware of this practice pr...

2010-04-15T19:20:34.647-05:00

Great post. I wasn't aware of this practice previously. It seems to me that the first time that I saw such a crazy looking word, I'd stop and really read it carefully. So initially this capitalization might be effective. However, after seeing these crazy names a few times, I'd probably wouldn't be so startled and therefore wouldn't read the word so carefully. Essentially, my response to this visual stimulation would attenuate over time, just as all our human senses attenuate their response to a repeated stimulus.

So what would be an alternative? Maybe you stumbled upon it, Jeff. Why not follow the name with a description as in your example?

"Levofloxacin – antibiotic"

Sure, that makes the drug name long, but in the name of patient safety, I'm sure the usability gods would turn a blind eye to a drug name that hung to far to the right, or god forbid, wrapped itself to the next line.

By the way, the link in the original post appears to be stale. I found this one, however.

By the way, I agree wit Pauline's comment abov...

2010-03-30T09:44:48.056-05:00

By the way, I agree wit Pauline's comment above. I was adapting her approach.

Here are some more from the ISMP.org web site. I&#...

2010-03-30T09:43:40.437-05:00

Here are some more from the ISMP.org web site. I've TALLmanned them.

LeveTIRACetam – anticonvulsant
LevoCARNitine – treats carnitine deficiency
LevoFLOXacin – antibiotic
LevoNORGESTrel – contraceptive
LevoTHYROXine – treats hypothyroidism

I arbitrarily chose which letters to ALL CAP. I wonder if there are written rules? I decided to find a key syllable or syllables to emphasize, assuming the words had "sound modules".

This is one area of patient safety work that I fee...

2010-03-26T06:54:12.429-05:00

This is one area of patient safety work that I feel strongly about, because I feel they have not quite got it right.

The theory is reasonable but there has been a lot of work done in the past on the readability of capital letters and it is found that capitalising whole words actually makes the text more difficult to read. This is why road signs and other important notices are in lower case.

In the case of medicines they have chosen to capitalise large sections of the words instead of just highlighting the differences. The end result if two (or more) words where they still look vewry similar, but worse, becasue the eye does not have the high and low tails to distinguish between the letters.

It would have been better if instead of capitals they had used a larger, bold font. Or if they had to use capitals, they should have recommended just capitalising a few key letters, not whole syllables.

For example:
AcetaZOLamide
AcetaminOPHEN

are more easily distinguished than
AcetaZOLAMIDE
AcetaMINOPHEN

Just my twopenn'orth

Regards

Pauline

This seems almost hopeless to me! The system is ju...

2010-03-10T17:05:30.929-06:00

This seems almost hopeless to me! The system is just to far gone.

Why not sign-up for a free account with the Practice Fusion (web-based) EHR and see what we've been able to do with user interface issues of the sort you raise?

80% of the suggestions made by users of our system have been implemented into the EHR, so it is almost like a "community-developed" system at this point.

Thanks,
Glenn Laffel, MD, PhD
Sr. VP Clinical Affairs
Practice Fusion
www.practicefusion.com
Free, Web-based EHR

One app out for smartphones is instaCare’s “MD@Han...

2010-02-21T07:58:13.503-06:00

One app out for smartphones is instaCare’s “MD@Hand’ which will run on the Apple iPhone, Palm Pre, the Droid, and the Blackberry, among others. I have found it very useful and practical in my clinical setting.

Thanks for sharing this information..

2010-01-29T06:11:38.523-06:00

Thanks for sharing this information..

Jeff, Your slides were right on. I and my company...

2010-01-12T13:51:48.280-06:00

Jeff,

Your slides were right on. I and my company are interested in these exact issues. Additionally, we want to make sure that the notion of "design" and a formal design process doesn't get forgotten in the rush to simply measure "usability" a la the HIMSS white paper. You've touched on some of these issues and I touch on several more in my paper. I would be happy if you would take a look and let me know what you think. Thanks.

Kevin

I second your thoughts on putting the assessment a...

2009-12-24T11:14:14.702-06:00

I second your thoughts on putting the assessment and plan at the top. Great idea. This idea reminds me of my favorite movie (When Harry Met Sally). Harry reads the last page of a book first, so that if he gets hits by a bus the next day he already knows who done it. Busy providers may get interrupted whilst reading a note. Therefore, it's probably best to read the punchline first and get the other details later, if time permits.

Hi Dev, Thanks for the suggestion. I plan to meet ...

2009-12-06T18:00:16.613-06:00

Hi Dev,
Thanks for the suggestion. I plan to meet next month with some folks involved with CCHIT's usability testing protocols. I'll pass along your excellent suggestion. I'm also working on a presentation for HIMSS 2010 in Atlanta. I'll be adressing how usability affects a number of meaningful use criteria. Your suggestion will help out there as well.

And, we'll add a bit to the bit.ly page you referenced.

Thanks.