EHR-Based Order Sets: 7 Methods For Successful Development

John B. Sparling | EHR Intelligence | April 10, 2013

Hospitals are keenly aware of the benefits of implementing order sets in the treatment of many conditions and diseases. Order sets apply clinical decision support (CDS) at the point of care and either focus on a specific condition (e.g., asthma) or are generalized for use in many scenarios. Evidence-based orders decrease the chance of omitted orders and pave the way for best practice implementation over the course of usage, review and redeployment. Moreover, the use of EHR-based order sets takes the care quality process to a higher level, improving consistency of treatment and patient safety and reducing patient mortality and hospital costs through decreased lengths of stay.

To make certain your EHR-based order set development efforts are successful from the start, the following are seven recommended key methods.

1. Secure administrative support and facility buy-in

Ideally, order set development is a corporate-wide initiative fully supported by the administration and performed in stages by facility or as a big bang approach across all facilities simultaneously. [...]