In Basket
In Basket is Connect Care’s secure, actionable and task-based communication toolkit that helps users manage their daily workflows. Prescribers use it to manage and action clinical tasks, and to communicate with colleagues and patients about tasks.
Task Management
Clinicians receive messages about tasks via In Basket. These messages are directly linked to patients’ charts, results and orders, making it easier to both appreciate and act on what needs doing. The tasks themselves can be managed (redirect, complete, share, etc.) from buttons in the In Basket task bar. Common tasks include:
Reviewing laboratory and imaging results.
Resolving incomplete documentation, open charts, co-sign needs or requested corrections.
Accepting tasks sent to a pool (e.g., triage of incoming referrals).
Delegating clinical coverage for In Basket work to other colleagues.
Routine attention to, and action upon, In Basket tasks can dramatically reduce Connect Care information burdens. However, neglect can lead to a large, cluttered and daunting tool that takes time to clear. Physicians who are off-service for prolonged periods can configure In Basket to send periodic email alerts about accruing tasks.
Communication
In Basket can be used to communicate with colleagues and patients, in a manner similar to email. However, unlike email, In Basket messages present with links to relevant information, charting tools and decision supports within the Connect Care ecosystem. Patients can be included in the circle of communication if they use MyAHS Connect, the Connect Care patient portal. Messages to other providers can have patient charts attached, with references to specific content. Messages to patients can have a variety of attachments, including materials from the patient's chart, external files or documents, questionnaires and informational materials.
In Basket communications can only be shared with clinicians who have adopted Connect Care or who have registered for its provider portal. AHS secure email is the preferred tool for communicating with external physicians until Connect Care becomes widely adopted throughout a zone.
In Basket provides a warning if either a target patient or physician is not a Connect Care communications user.
Using In Basket
Using In Basket in a regular, appropriate way is imperative to patient safety. Prescribers must check In Basket frequently to ensure that all investigations, results and required actions are managed in a timely and safe manner.
The "In Basket Basics" section of the In Basket Best Practices Guide provides an excellent introduction to the layout and functions of In Basket in Hyperspace.
The Connect Care Communication Norms cover matters of In Basket hygiene, together with expectations of timely responses to different types of In Basket messages.
Results and Reports
While the Best Practices Guide covers all that a clinician-user might need to know, it is particularly important for physicians to appreciate how laboratory results or test reports might present as In Basket tasks for review:
Inpatient
Laboratory results and test reports are NOT delivered to In Basket if the order was placed for a patient admitted to a facility and the result becomes available during the admission encounter. Responsible clinicians are expected to use Chart Review to check for new information about inpatients. There are tools for marking results as viewed so that anything new is easy to see. Other alerts and visual cues appear in patient lists, Story Board and Summary views.
Results posted AFTER patient discharge are posted to the In Basket of the discharging physician.
Outpatient
Laboratory results and test reports are delivered to the In Basket of the most responsible provider (usually encounter provider) for the outpatient encounter at which the orders were placed.
All Contexts
If a laboratory result or test report is explicitly COPIED to a prescriber and that prescriber uses Connect Care, the result or report is delivered to the copied provider's In Basket, irrespective of whether the ordering context is inpatient, outpatient, emergency, critical care, etc.
Misdirected Result Messages
Any action taken on an In Basket message, including "Doning" it to remove it, can be the equivalent of opening a chart. This is because message titles and reports can include identifiable patient information. Accessing the chart of a patient with whom a provider has no approved relationship could constitute a breach under the Health Information Act.
Sometimes physicians receive In Basket results messages in error. Once a prescriber confirms that the information is indeed inappropriately shared, an In Basket "QuickAction" can be used to flag the error and indicate, if known, to whom the message should be redirected.
The Not My Result QuickAction will generate and route a standardized reply message. The default content includes a pick-list for possible error causes and a pick-list for any remedial actions taken. This QuickAction should not be used if the receiving provider was intentionally carbon-copied by the ordering provider.
In Basket Delegation
Clinicians can elect to give another Connect Care user access or editing rights to In Basket. This may be appropriate on a continuing basis for support staff who help the provider with communications. This can also be used episodically to ensure In Basket surveillance when a provider goes on vacation or is otherwise indisposed. Delegation by "granting access" and then "attaching" an In Basket is described in the Best Practices guide, as is the process for indicating that one is "Out of Contact".
In Basket Email Reminders
An In Basket personalization allows physicians to set up email reminders, as described in the Best Practices guide. Reminders go to a user-selected email address, are configurable for different time intervals, and can be triggered by one or more types of In Basket events. The reminder does not contain identifiable patient information (just an alert that there is material to attend to in Connect Care) and so can be directed to personal or institutional email services.