Version Current

New and Improved Features:

You will be installing ALL prior releases that have been posted since your current program version. Therefore, use the "View All Updates" link (above) to review ALL of the releases that may affect you. Your current program version appears at the top of your Ascend-IP screen (in "yyyymmddhhmm" format).

WARNING Custom MAR and Label users. This update includes the ability to enter IV rates in units of measure other than in ML/HR (e.g., MCG/KG/HR). However, your custom MAR and/or custom IV label may be "hard-coded" to print "ML/HR" even if the order rate is in one of the new units of measure. To prevent medication errors, do not implement this update until your custom MAR/Label has been adjusted to support the new IV rates.

IV Rates: Additional IV rate units of measure are now available for display on orders, MARs, labels and reports. The program will still use ML/HR as the default unit of measure, and will continue to automatically schedule IV order doses if the SIG contains a ML/HR rate, or an interval in hours. Suggestion: If the order's IV rate will not use the ML/HR unit of measure, use the SIG to enter an interval (e.g. "HANG IV Q8H") which will be used for scheduling purposes, and use the specific rate fields to specify the ordered rate (e.g., "IV Rate: [ 2 ] [ MCG/KG/HR ]")

Banned Abbreviations: Ascend-IP now supports elimination of all abbreviations that were banned as of April 2004. Additional information on implementing the necessary changes is available on our website at: http://www.hosinc.com/products/ascendip/support/help/medication_safety.htm (accessible by licensed customers only) and in the next Update Information section below.

Additional SIG code replacements: In addition to automatic replacement of "scheduling" codes (such as QD, Q6H and QOD) provided by previous versions of Ascend-IP, any "non-scheduling" abbreviations or codes found in the SIG field can now be replaced with a full description. For example, banned abbreviations in the SIG (e.g., "AU") can be replaced with full descriptions (e,g, "both ears"). Even non-banned abbreviations (e.g., "HA") can be replaced (e.g., "headache"). This feature also enables you to replace SIG abbreviations that may be banned in the future. It also allows you to create order entry "short-cut" codes which can be expanded automatically, saving order entry time while promoting medication safety. Ascend-IP's "code replacement" features will support a SIG with up to one "scheduling" code, and any number of "non-scheduling" codes.

Program and Interface Updates: The Ascend-IP menu option, "Updates/Download updates" is now available. This allows you to get download update files from our website from within Ascend-IP. You must have access to your facility's HOS website username/password. This option is also available from the Interface Engine menus to update its version if needed.

Web-based Support: A new menu option "Help/Remote Support Tool" allows you to share your computer screen with our technical support and/or training staff when desirable (e.g., during a phone support/training session). We can also share our computer screens with you when desirable, and safely transfer files containing patient protected healthcare information (PHI). The connection is made via the Internet, is fast and easy, is only temporary, is fully encrypted and HIPAA compliant, is initiated by you not by us, and requires no permanent software installation. You can also establish a connection from your Customer Service area of the HOS website. To use this feature, you must have a HOS staff person on the phone, and have access to the Internet from your computer. You must also have access to your facility's username/password if you wish to access this feature via the HOS website.

Interface Engine: Our new Interface Engine v.3 (IEv3) and Ascend-IP provides the following new features: (1) You can view interface message history for orders from within AIP. (2) One copy of IEv3 supports multiple connections to multiple vendors. (3) You can define patient types within AIP and IEv3 to match your hospital's patient types. (4) IEv3 and AIP support inbound Physician order entry (CPOE) messages and outbound order messages. (5) IEv3 can receive Pregnancy and Lactation data from certain HIS vendors and store it in AIP. All interfaces installed in 2004 have been configured with the IEv3 and approximately 25% of our existing clients have been converted to it. Please contact HOS if you wish to upgrade to Interface Engine v.3.

Pregnancy and Lactation: These selections on the patient ADT demographics screen have been modified to include 'Unknown', 'Yes', 'No', and 'Not Applicable' options.

BASE solutions: A new formulary record field has been added to let you indicate which items are to be coded as "base" solutions for transmission through an HL7 interface (e.g., "D5W 1000ML", "NS 100ML" and etc.). This will enable our interfaces to formulate HL7 multi-ingredient order messages so that receiving vendors can differentiate "base" solutions from additives.

Pricing Utility: Dosage information ("dose" and "per" fields) have been added to the Formulary Pricing export file.

Automated Database Maintenance: A new database maintenance tool has been added under the "Utilities/Maintenance Tools/Maintenance Schedule" menus. The tool lets you build rules to help you automatically discharge and/or purge records, minimize database size, and improve performance. For example, you can create rules to automatically: (1) discharge "23 hour stay" or "ER" patients (2) purge patients who never received orders. (3) delete old scheduled doses that were never charged (4) and much more. Rules can be scheduled to run every day and can be activated/deactivated as needed.

Fill List reports: Previous Fill-list versions always included all scheduled doses for the target period whether they were charged or not. This was based on the requirement that all "starter doses" should exclude doses that are expected to be handled by the next fill-list. A new option (Utilities/Options/Fill-list menus) let you exclude charged doses from the Fill-list. Therefore, extra "starter doses" that may have been dispensed and charged earlier will NOT appear on the Fill-list. This option has also been added to the Report filter screen which appears when you select to print or preview a Fill-list report.

Inventory control and Receiving: New features have been added to track formulary inventory counts and make receiving duties easier. Facilities that must maintain inventory counts and provide inventory reports will most likely want to use these features. The receiving screen allows you to edit acquisition costs, add purchases to inventory, enter lot numbers and enter expiration dates.

Stop Order reports: a new "Utilities/Stop Orders" menu option allows you to insert a page break per Unit on Stop order reports.

Inactive Orders: a new option to "Manually verify inactive orders" has been added to the "Utilities/Options/Order Entry" menus. With this option turned on, the user must explicitly select the "Active" setting for an Inactive order when Verifying orders. With it turned off (the default), Inactive orders are "activated" automatically (as soon as they are displayed) and you should either correct them, DC them or "de-activate" them if they are not correct as is.

IV Summary reports: A new option in "Utilities/Labels-IV's" allows you to exclude 'Floor Stock IV' orders from the IV Summary reports.

One-Time Orders: Two new option boxes control how and when "one-time" orders are stopped and/or discontinued. These are found under "Utilities/Options/Order entry". The option in the left column, "Automatically discontinue one-time orders" when not checked, causes another option to appear in the right column, "Set the stop time for one-time orders to [ ] hours after the start date/time". The user can specify the number of hours the stop time should be advanced beyond the start time. [Note: The order will be discontinued according to the stop order policy specified elsewhere on this screen.] On the other hand, when the "Automatically discontinue one-time orders" option is checked, it causes the other option to read, "Set the DC time for one-time orders to [ ] hours after the start date/time". The user can set the DC time in hours to advance the DC date/time beyond the start date/time. These options may be necessary for some vendors (e.g., Pyxis, etc) to properly display one-time orders for a minimum period if these orders are received from us via an interface.

Labels-Patient Identification options: A new option under "Utilities/Labels-IV's" allows you to print the Medical Record number instead of the Patient Account number (the default) for all standard labels.

MARs: A new menu option, "Print Patient MAR", has been added to the patient profile "right mouse button" menu. This allows the patient's MAR to be printed properly without having to view each page beforehand. The "View Patient MAR" is still available.

Trissels-2 Pharmaceutical database: A menu option to proceed to "Trissels-2" Pharmaceutics database (website) has been added under the Clinical menu. This enables you to branch to the Trissels website without leaving Ascend-IP.

Password Encryption: Ascend-IP passwords will now be stored in your database (SQL, MSDE and Access) in an encrypted manner. This will help you meet HIPAA security requirements.

Password Expiration: A new option under "Utilities/Facility" lets you specify the amount of time user passwords can remain active before they must be changed. Unless a number is entered, passwords will remain active indefinitely as before. When used properly, this option can help you meet HIPAA security requirements.

Corrections:

Note: Many of the corrections listed below were made in a previous version, but were not documented until the release of this version.