eNotifications
Follow-up with Your Patients Sooner
An eNotification is a near real-time electronic message sent through Health Report Manager® (HRM) to primary care providers to notify them when their patients are discharged from the Emergency Department or are admitted or discharged from in-patient units.
eNotifications are an HRM add-on and appear in your EMR in the same manner as a Medical Record report sent through HRM. eNotifications are augmented with Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) and Health Links information (where available) prior to being sent to your EMR. After receiving an eNotification, you will subsequently receive a discharge summary and/or other reports from the hospital after the hospital has prepared the report(s) for electronic transmission.
How eNotifications Work
eNotifications are an added feature of HRM and appear in your EMR in the same manner as a Medical Record report sent through HRM. eNotifications are augmented with CCAC and Health Links information (where available) prior to being sent to your EMR. After receiving an eNotification, you will subsequently receive a discharge summary and/or other reports from the hospital after the hospital has prepared the report(s) for electronic transmission.
News
eNotifications have been approved by the Ontario Ministry of Health for expansion through the Ontario Health's Shared Services' Client Health and Related Information System (CHRIS) and HRM to other hospitals in the province.
Benefits Evaluation Results
After three months of use, a Benefits Evaluation was conducted to assess eNotifications' impact on patient care from the perspectives of the Michael Garron Hospital (MGH) and the South East Toronto Family Health Team (SETFHT).
- 100% of the notifications sent from MGH to the SETFHT's EMR were reviewed by the family physician within 7 days, and a follow-up action was determined for the patient.
- 57% of the notifications were for patients who were determined to be complex using the Ministry of Health's definition.
- Using the ministry definition for follow-up, 54% of these notifications resulted in follow-up compared to an annual rate of 37% in 2013.
Clinician & Patient Benefits
Patients benefit from eNotifications by receiving faster follow-up care from their primary care providers. Continuity of care between acute and primary care settings is improved because primary care providers are notified of Emergency Department and in-patient unit visits sooner and are empowered by timely and accurate patient information.
For clinicians, eNotifications provide quicker access to the latest patient information needed for making decisions about appropriate follow-up care. eNotifications enable clinicians to improve their ability to meet the recommended ministry guideline of follow-up with patients within 7 days post-discharge.
How to get eNotifications
If you are using HRM, you will receive eNotifications automatically as hospitals enable eNotifications through HRM. eNotifications are an additional feature of HRM.
If you are not using HRM and are using an OntarioMD-certified EMR, please contact OntarioMD at support@ontariomd.com to sign up for HRM. Once you've signed up to receive reports from HRM, you are positioned to take advantage of eNotifications as well.
Answers to frequently asked questions about eNotifications can be found on the HRM Frequently Asked Questions page.
Who is Sending eNotifications
View the list of sites sending eNotifications on the Sending Facilities page .
Background
Health care providers need timely communication and the ability to share relevant clinical information. Better communication and care coordination between a hospital and family physician, especially about the hospital visits of complex care patients, enables faster and safer follow-up treatment.
To help achieve this goal for health care providers, East Toronto Health Link (ETHeL), Toronto Central LHIN, Michael Garron Hospital (formerly Toronto East General Hospital), OntarioMD and the Ontario Health's Shared Services (formerly Health Shared Services Ontario) examined the feasibility of sending eNotifications. Michael Garron Hospital was the first hospital to pilot eNotifications in April 2014 and is sending eNotifications to physicians connected to HRM.
Michael Garron Hospital's pilot on eNotifications was recognized as a Leading Practice by Accreditation Canada due to its effectiveness in improving communication and patient safety.