May 2024 eTips Newsletter

Tips and advice on EMRs and digital health tools you can use NOW

From the CMO's Desk

Join us for our Digital Health Virtual Symposium on June 14, 2024

Knowledge is power, but sharing it is even better. With that in mind, I'd like to remind everyone that the OMD Educates: Digital Health Virtual Symposium is less than a month away! This one-of-a-kind conference offers the opportunity to stay informed of digital health updates and gain Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits, all from the comfort of your home or office. This year's program features trending topics based on your feedback such as AI, cybersecurity, secure messaging, workflow improvements, and more. Don't miss our line-up of dynamic speakers, including award-winning author and Globe & Mail journalist, André Picard! Whether you're a physician, nurse, clinic manager, nurse practitioner, or clinic staff member, this conference offers something for everyone.

Can't make the date? You should still register to access the session recordings up to four months after the conference. Part of a group with more than four members? Email us at omd.events@ontariomd.com to ask about discounted group pricing. Register for the conference today!

OMD In the News

Ministry of Health Announces AI Scribe Program

On April 24, Ontario Health Minister the Hon. Sylvia Jones announced the AI scribe initiative to help family physicians get back to being physicians, not administrators. OntarioMD is leading this initiative to evaluate the use of AI scribe tools in collaboration with the eHealth Centre of Excellence (eCE) and Women's College Hospital Institute for Health System Solutions and Virtual Care (WIHV). Watch the news conference or read the Ministry's announcement.

Global News Interview with Dr. Rosemarie Lall, AI Scribe User

Watch the Global News interview with Dr. Rosemarie Lall, a family physician practising in Scarborough. Dr. Lall has been using AI scribe for ten months, and it has prevented her from closing her practice and restored her joy in practicing medicine.

OntarioMD Featured in Canadian Healthcare Technology Journal

Canadian Healthcare Technology Journal published an article by OntarioMD's Dr. Abbas Zavar, Digital Health Research Lead, Partnerships and Stakeholders, and Simon Ling, Executive Director, Partnerships and Stakeholders and Corporate Services, on our multifaceted AI strategy to help alleviate physician burden.

Advice from the General Counsel and CPO

PHIPA vs. PIPEDA: What's the Difference?

In our digital age, privacy and security are more important than ever. As health-care professionals, you must comply with the privacy laws that govern your practice. These include the Personal Health Information Protection Act (PHIPA) and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).

PHIPA is provincial legislation that protects the confidentiality and privacy of personal health information (PHI) with rules on how it is collected, used and shared by health information custodians (HICs). HICs are individuals (e.g., physicians) or organizations with access to or control of PHI in their roles and duties related to providing health care.

PIPEDA, on the other hand, is federal legislation that protects personal data in a broader sense, not specific to health information as PHIPA. Your obligation to protect the privacy of PHI remains the same, but technologies such as AI scribe add a layer of complexity to the task. Remember to always exercise care and due diligence with all patient information. To learn about the latest in privacy and security compliance, register for our Digital Health Virtual Symposium on June 14 and attend my afternoon sessions, "Staying on Top of Your Legal, Privacy and Security Obligations", and "Informed Innovation: A Physician's Legal and Privacy Guide to AI Scribe Use". I look forward to seeing you!

Tip from a Peer Leader

OMD Peer Leaders comprise a network of over 60 physicians (family doctors and other specialists), nurse practitioners, nurses, and clinic managers. As expert users of OMD-certified EMRs and other digital health and virtual care tools, they work with our Advisory Service Team to help you with your EMR and digital workflows. Discover what our Peer Leader Program and Advisory Service can do for you.

This month's tip comes from Dr. Keith Thompson, OMD Physician Peer Leader and practising family physician in London, Ontario. View the video to discover how to leverage the video chat feature in Avaros EMR to run live video sessions with patients, and learn about other features, including patient messaging, and creating and sharing appointment details with patients in advance.

HRM Task Force Updates

COVaxON Vaccination Survey Results are in!

We recently asked you to complete a survey, made available through the eTips newsletter, social media, and OMA news, on the value of COVaxON vaccination reports sent via HRM. Now that the survey is closed, here's what respondents shared about their interest in continuing to receive these reports.

Always / Sometimes – 40%
Rarely / Never – 54%
Other – 6%

With this invaluable feedback, OntarioMD is exploring and advancing solutions that will allow clinicians to choose the type of reports they wish to receive. Your thoughts are always appreciated.

OMD Change Management & Adoption Services

Still Using Paper MTO Forms? There’s a Better Way!

With eForms, OMD is making form completion easier for you. eForms are digital forms that you can complete from the convenience of your EMR and submit electronically. Other forms that are available in your EMR are delivered through FAX to the recipient. With eForms, you no longer need to fax paper or digital forms, only to have them sent back because they are outdated or have incomplete information. There are 16 forms available from the Ministry of Transportation (MTO), with more on the way!

Make form submission easier for yourself and request eForms today!

Leverage Our Expertise to Meet Your OHT’s Digital Health Needs

OMD is involved with Ontario Health Teams (OHTs) in every area of Ontario. We deliver digital tools to clinicians in all OHTs. We can support clinicians in your OHT with:

Training and education
Change management and adoption of existing or new digital health tools
Preventive care and integrated care pathway projects

Digital Health Drug Repository (DHDR): A Valuable Item in Your Patient Care Toolkit

It’s crucial for clinicians to know about the medications that patients are taking to avoid adverse drug events. DHDR provides up-to-date information on drugs dispensed to patients, which you can access seamlessly through your EMR. Join the many clinicians who have access to DHDR. (Please note: DHDR is still not available to TELUS Health EMR users. Please speak to TELUS Health if you are their client and want access to DHDR.)

Contact support@ontariomd.com or your local OMD Advisor to connect DHDR to your EMR.

OMD Education

We present at many events and conferences to engage with you, your staff, and other health system stakeholders. View our events calendar for a complete list of conferences and webinars. Hope to see you at one of them!

OMDEducates.com: Your Digital Health Knowledge Repository Site

Bookmark our site if you’re looking for:

Advice on EMRs and Digital Health Tools: Learn how the OMD Advisory Service can help you use these tools effectively.
More Patient Data: Ask a question or sign up to receive drug information, hospital reports, and lab results through your EMR.
Tools and Resources: e.g., EMR tools, ‘how to’ videos, EMR Communities of Practice, and more.
Training and Education: e.g., Get Peer Leader advice, find out about upcoming educational events, watch recordings of past webinars, etc.

If you have a suggestion for a tool, training or resource you and your peers could use, email us and you could see it on OMDEducates.com.

Secure Messaging Resources on OMD Educates

Do you have questions about secure messaging? Visit our OMD Educates page for learning resources to help determine if this technology is right for you and your practice.

Need Help with Your EMR?

Your EMR should be a benefit, not a burden. If you need help, our OMD Advisory Service can assist you! We can help you use your EMR better to save you time and frustration.

We are experts in all OMD-certified EMRs! Through our EMR Lab, we can develop tools and suggest helpful workflow improvements.

Have you joined our EMR Communities of Practice (CoP)? CoP is a virtual place for EMR and digital health tool users, including clinicians and office staff, to come together and improve upon their knowledge, discover upcoming changes, ask questions and learn from colleagues. Find out more about OMD EMR Communities of Practice and join the CoP for your EMR!

We can connect your EMR to drug information, eConsult, eForms, hospital reports, and lab results.

If you prefer to talk to a peer, our Peer Leaders can also help you. Contact support@ontariomd.com and help will soon be on the way!

We can help you protect your patient data through our FREE CME-accredited online Privacy & Security training.

Important Reminders

Changing EMRs or Practices, Moving Your Practice? OMD Needs to Know! 

All EMR Users 

To help us provide the best support to optimize your EMR use, please notify OMD at support@ontariomd.com when switching to another EMR, moving offices or joining a different clinic. We also need to know if you have changed your email address or phone number.

HRM Users

If you’re moving, switching Internet providers, changing your Internet plan, or switching EMRs, your IP address may be changing and OMD needs to know! We need to update our records to make sure your EMR continues to receive patient reports through HRM. Please notify OMD at support@ontariomd.com a minimum of 7 business days in advance of the change with a complete change request and a valid IP address to ensure you don’t experience any service interruptions.

Partner News

OntarioMD Content Now Available on the OMA App!

The OMA mobile app offers the latest OMA news, popular tools and resources, and now, OntarioMD information! If you're an OMA member, signing into the app is easy! Just enter the same login information you use to access the OMA website: your OMA membership number or email address and password. To submit feedback on your OMA app experience, email info@oma.org.

HRM First Nations Pilot

In partnership with OntarioMD, Kingston Health Sciences Centre and Ininew Patient Services (IPS), Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (WAHA) participated in a pilot serving First Nations communities, to enhance transitions of care and flow of HRM reports. As a result of this pilot, WAHA began receiving additional health reports in March for patients referred to the Kingston Health Sciences Centre via IPS.

New Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) 2021 Equation

Ontario Health (Ontario Renal Network) is working with health system partners to implement the new Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) 2021 equation to calculate estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), beginning April 2024.

The CKD-EPI 2021 eGFR equation replaces the CKD-EPI 2009 equation, which included a race adjustment variable for Black populations. Access resources for patients (in English and French) and health-care providers.

Calling all Primary Care Clinicians, Clinic Managers and Medical Office Assistants!

Comprehensive primary care is the foundation for an effective health system, but more support is needed to ensure your clinic runs as efficiently as possible. Since a well-run clinic depends on high-performing administrative staff, the team at Women's College Hospital (WCH) is working with health system leaders to understand interventions that may help administrative staff in your clinic. WCH is conducting a survey—please take a moment to ask your medical office administrative staff to complete it. The survey results will directly impact efforts to support you in delivering high-quality and efficient patient care.

Complete the survey to support the face of primary care.

Please direct any questions to the study coordinator at MOAsurvey@wchospital.ca.

OntarioMD and Ontario Health Team Up for Webinar Wednesday Healthcare Innovation Rounds

Chief Medical Officer Dr. Chandi Chandrasena joined Digital Health Clinical Lead at Ontario Health, Dr. Claire Liddy, for a webinar on navigating administrative burden. View the webinar to learn about government initiatives and innovative digital health approaches in community family medicine.