Scanning Forms can be Tricky

When scanning into batches and selecting document types to index, there are many issues that cause misfiling. Below is a list of findings from a typical set of scan queues across different departments and facilities:

·         Forms with Exact Name as Doc Type are more accurately filed.

o   Exception: Admission Orders: Bariatric Surgery Procedures                   

·         It helps to have a standard form across practices and checkbox to distinguish the location

·         Forms with labels are more consistently filed

·         General doc type names get all of the misfit forms

·         Some misfiles are from changes to doc types which leave the old docs in general types and the new ones go to the newer more specific types

·         Inconsistent form headers and footers cause misfiles

·         Machine printed forms are more accurately filed

·         Some Doc Types have less than 10 scans in them

·         Very specific names gather all forms of that name whether they are correct or not, for example: “pH” or “Esophageal”

·         Barcoding for doc types is very accurate, however, the form names need to be consistent and sometimes the barcode doc type is manually re-indexed to a different doc type

·         General Form Names as a Heading (large type) with specific names as sub heads underneath sometimes get misfiled

·         Some Doc Types were created for a specific facility and are misfiled against because they don’t have the same form names as other facilities, ex. HIV Informed Consent

·         Regardless of language, the forms should have the same template layout

·         Forms should be consistently scanned, for example, the same front page, number of pages, layout, etc.

·         Redundant doc types should be consolidated: “Consent for Participation in Pet Visitation Program” and “Consent for Participation in Animal-Assisted Therapy Program”

·         Non-company forms are mixed in with company forms

·         Some redundant doc types are used by different scan queues, for example one facility uses both “Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) Consent Form” and “Peripherally Inserted Catheters Consent”, while the other facility uses “Peripherally Inserted Catheters Consent”

·         There are clusters of doc types that are close to the same definition that should be considered for consolidation, for example,

o   HIV Informed Consent

o   HIV Testing Consent Form

o   HIV Testing Informed Consent, Health Care Worker Exposure

·         Doc Types no longer in use should be taken out of the scan queues

·         Some doc types have names that are too limiting: ex: “Sterilization Consent Form Ages 21 or Older”, where some of the forms are for ages 18-21…

·         Some doc types have “or” instead of “and”: ex:  doc type is  “Consent for Surgical or Diagnostic Procedure”, while the form’s name is “Consent for Surgical and Diagnostic Procedure”. The “or” suggests that this could be for either surgical or diagnostic procedures, not both…

·         Groupings of types should start with the same label value

·                         Example: consents should all start with “Consent”, then the second defining label

·         General types should be further detailed

·         Specific department types overlap general types