Errors Hinder Utility of Data-Capture Software

KANANASKIS, ALTA. — A new technology involving automatic data capture from incoming faxes may not function as well as originally anticipated, and seems fraught with a variety of front-end user problems.

The fax system may prove to be a valuable tool in a practice audit, assuming that the errors found by his study are corrected, said Dr. Steven Edworthy of the University of Calgary, Alta.

The study used special templates developed for Gravic Inc.'s Remark software, which interprets and processes data from incoming fax questionnaires, Dr. Edworthy reported at the annual meeting of the Canadian Rheumatology Association.

Bar codes were used to identify the name of the practice, and respondents used printed “bubbles” (like those on answer sheets for standardized tests) for their answers on two questionnaires on practice characteristics and treatment choices for rheumatoid arthritis.

“The beauty of it was that it would come straight into our server and be read,” he said in an interview.

“We automated the entire process at a very fundamental level for the rheumatologists. Even somebody who didn't have a computer could participate in this program,” he added.

In all, 27 rheumatologists sent 457 faxes, 17% of which could not be read by the software. The majority of these had missing, angled, or upside-down pages, or other significant defects such as blurred text, a small font, or multiple pages printed on a single sheet of paper.

The questionnaires considered by the software to be valid were then subjected to a quality control examination. A small percentage of them contained misread fields, but questionnaires with such errors “were generally coming from people who didn't have good technology in their office,” Dr. Edworthy said. “Their fax machines were old or hadn't been cleaned.”

The refinement of this type of program may ultimately prove to be a boon in the everyday practice of rheumatologists who are not ready to make the transition to electronic medical record (EMR) systems, he noted.

Rheumatologists could use bar-coded forms to receive faxed referrals that are automatically processed by the technology, thereby streamlining business processes.

Although utilizing EMR systems or handheld computers may be the eventual goal of most medical practices, not all rheumatologists are comfortable using such devices. Going “paperlite” before “paperless” will be a more comfortable evolution for most rheumatologists, he added.

“By and large, rheumatologists are very comfortable doing a lot of things on paper,” Dr. Edworthy said.

“Most like to sit [across from] the patient and make their notes, and then do their dictation into a recorder or [send the notes] to a transcriptionist's office afterward,” he added.

Developers of EMR technology have not addressed that issue fully, Dr. Edworthy said.

Taking notes on a PDA may seem like a similar process, but it can be distracting for the physician, particularly if he or she is not comfortable using a keyboard.

The fax system could be a “potential bridge in terms of where rheumatologists are today and where they will be a few years from now,” he said.

Dr. Edworthy disclosed no financial conflicts of interest.

KANANASKIS, ALTA. — A new technology involving automatic data capture from incoming faxes may not function as well as originally anticipated, and seems fraught with a variety of front-end user problems.

The fax system may prove to be a valuable tool in a practice audit, assuming that the errors found by his study are corrected, said Dr. Steven Edworthy of the University of Calgary, Alta.

The study used special templates developed for Gravic Inc.'s Remark software, which interprets and processes data from incoming fax questionnaires, Dr. Edworthy reported at the annual meeting of the Canadian Rheumatology Association.

Bar codes were used to identify the name of the practice, and respondents used printed “bubbles” (like those on answer sheets for standardized tests) for their answers on two questionnaires on practice characteristics and treatment choices for rheumatoid arthritis.

“The beauty of it was that it would come straight into our server and be read,” he said in an interview.

“We automated the entire process at a very fundamental level for the rheumatologists. Even somebody who didn't have a computer could participate in this program,” he added.

In all, 27 rheumatologists sent 457 faxes, 17% of which could not be read by the software. The majority of these had missing, angled, or upside-down pages, or other significant defects such as blurred text, a small font, or multiple pages printed on a single sheet of paper.

The questionnaires considered by the software to be valid were then subjected to a quality control examination. A small percentage of them contained misread fields, but questionnaires with such errors “were generally coming from people who didn't have good technology in their office,” Dr. Edworthy said. “Their fax machines were old or hadn't been cleaned.”

The refinement of this type of program may ultimately prove to be a boon in the everyday practice of rheumatologists who are not ready to make the transition to electronic medical record (EMR) systems, he noted.

Rheumatologists could use bar-coded forms to receive faxed referrals that are automatically processed by the technology, thereby streamlining business processes.

Although utilizing EMR systems or handheld computers may be the eventual goal of most medical practices, not all rheumatologists are comfortable using such devices. Going “paperlite” before “paperless” will be a more comfortable evolution for most rheumatologists, he added.

“By and large, rheumatologists are very comfortable doing a lot of things on paper,” Dr. Edworthy said.

“Most like to sit [across from] the patient and make their notes, and then do their dictation into a recorder or [send the notes] to a transcriptionist's office afterward,” he added.

Developers of EMR technology have not addressed that issue fully, Dr. Edworthy said.

Taking notes on a PDA may seem like a similar process, but it can be distracting for the physician, particularly if he or she is not comfortable using a keyboard.

The fax system could be a “potential bridge in terms of where rheumatologists are today and where they will be a few years from now,” he said.

Dr. Edworthy disclosed no financial conflicts of interest.

KANANASKIS, ALTA. — A new technology involving automatic data capture from incoming faxes may not function as well as originally anticipated, and seems fraught with a variety of front-end user problems.

The fax system may prove to be a valuable tool in a practice audit, assuming that the errors found by his study are corrected, said Dr. Steven Edworthy of the University of Calgary, Alta.

The study used special templates developed for Gravic Inc.'s Remark software, which interprets and processes data from incoming fax questionnaires, Dr. Edworthy reported at the annual meeting of the Canadian Rheumatology Association.

Bar codes were used to identify the name of the practice, and respondents used printed “bubbles” (like those on answer sheets for standardized tests) for their answers on two questionnaires on practice characteristics and treatment choices for rheumatoid arthritis.

“The beauty of it was that it would come straight into our server and be read,” he said in an interview.

“We automated the entire process at a very fundamental level for the rheumatologists. Even somebody who didn't have a computer could participate in this program,” he added.

In all, 27 rheumatologists sent 457 faxes, 17% of which could not be read by the software. The majority of these had missing, angled, or upside-down pages, or other significant defects such as blurred text, a small font, or multiple pages printed on a single sheet of paper.

The questionnaires considered by the software to be valid were then subjected to a quality control examination. A small percentage of them contained misread fields, but questionnaires with such errors “were generally coming from people who didn't have good technology in their office,” Dr. Edworthy said. “Their fax machines were old or hadn't been cleaned.”

The refinement of this type of program may ultimately prove to be a boon in the everyday practice of rheumatologists who are not ready to make the transition to electronic medical record (EMR) systems, he noted.

Rheumatologists could use bar-coded forms to receive faxed referrals that are automatically processed by the technology, thereby streamlining business processes.

Although utilizing EMR systems or handheld computers may be the eventual goal of most medical practices, not all rheumatologists are comfortable using such devices. Going “paperlite” before “paperless” will be a more comfortable evolution for most rheumatologists, he added.

“By and large, rheumatologists are very comfortable doing a lot of things on paper,” Dr. Edworthy said.

“Most like to sit [across from] the patient and make their notes, and then do their dictation into a recorder or [send the notes] to a transcriptionist's office afterward,” he added.

Developers of EMR technology have not addressed that issue fully, Dr. Edworthy said.

Taking notes on a PDA may seem like a similar process, but it can be distracting for the physician, particularly if he or she is not comfortable using a keyboard.

The fax system could be a “potential bridge in terms of where rheumatologists are today and where they will be a few years from now,” he said.

Dr. Edworthy disclosed no financial conflicts of interest.