Managing Physician Orders
This guide outlines the steps for creating, updating, and finalizing physician orders in Hospice Works to ensure accurate patient care and documentation.
Getting Started
- Navigate to the Patient Dashboard.
- Click on the Care Management tab.
- Select Create Physician Order from the dropdown menu.
Mandatory Order Details
Before adding specific orders, you must fill out the required fields (highlighted in red):
- Effective Date: The date the order begins.
- Physician: Select the physician responsible for the order.
- Read-back Nurse: Select the nurse who verified the order for accuracy
Order Sections
The system organizes orders into several categories. Toggle each section on to view current orders or add new ones:
- Medications: Add new medications, discontinue existing ones, or update dosages/frequencies.
- Note: You must specify if the medication is related to the terminal diagnosis and select the appropriate coverage (e.g., Hospice Covered).
- Assignments: Update or remove care team assignments (e.g., Chaplain, Skilled Nurse, Hospice Aide). You can adjust visit frequencies here.
- Treatments: Add specific interventions and link them to a care plan.
- DME & Supplies: Search for and add durable medical equipment or medical supplies.
- Change Care Level or Location: Used for actions like discharging a patient alive or changing the level of care (e.g., Routine Care to Inpatient Care).
Finalizing the Order
- Preview: Click the Preview button to review all changes. Only the items added or updated in the current session will appear here.
- Ready to Sign: If everything is correct, click Ready to Sign.
- Confirm & Submit: Confirm that the document is ready for signing, which will lock the order from further edits.
- Electronic Signature: Review the signature confirmation and click Confirm.
Once signed, the order is officially generated and sent to the physician.
[!IMPORTANT] Additional Order Notes: Use the notes field for comments only. Information entered here does not automatically become a system-recognized order. Always use the defined fields within each section for actual orders.
Need Help?
If you encounter any issues, please contact the support team at support@hospiceworks.com.