Recently, we have entered into a partnership with RxCheckIn! RxCheckIn connects providers and patients with a simple to use system that educates and monitors patient recovery following any procedure. We think their postoperative platform compliments our informed consent and patient education preoperative platform in a very productive way. The surgical perioperative process extends far outside of the operating room and we both truly believe that our partnership and platforms together work in harmony creating a better and safer experience for providers and patients.
When a patient undergoes surgery their experience does not start with them under the knife in an operating room and end leaving for recovery. This experience begins much earlier and ends much later then the actual surgery itself. In fact, the process begins with a visit to the doctor when the patient is first diagnosed with an issue or condition that may require surgery. There is a surgical treatment plan proposed, and then the consent must be obtained. This process should be in depth and go over the details of the procedure, risks, benefits, alternatives, and one of the most important aspects, an assessment of the patient’s understanding. Once the consent is obtained then the procedure may be scheduled, and eventually the patient will have said procedure. However, the consent process can be rushed, not-standardized, the patient may have poor memory recall regarding the details, the task may be delegated, it might not be appropriately documented, and can even be responsible for one third malpractice claims filed annually. That’s where Confirmed Consent steps in.
What the Confirmed Consent platform ensures is that the patient views standardized information from their specific surgeon describing the procedure in detail, and has the ability to decline the procedure or ask questions about the information presented. Then they are asked questions via a cognitive assessment to ensure that there was understanding and the patient is competent to sign the consent document. Patients have access to review the information from their surgeon alone or with their family members in a comfortable environment as many times as they would like. On average, patients review this information at least two to three times per procedure. This saves time, resources, and decreases the risk of malpractice litigation. Our platform also creates the best experience for the patient, with our patient satisfaction rating using our platform above 97 percent! It has been shown that patients who go into surgery more confident and reassured, statistically have better outcomes.
Fast forward to post operative care. Once the surgery has been completed, unless otherwise specified, there is pain management medication given for recovery. Oftentimes this happens outside of the hospital at home. Given that it is not unusual for opioids to be prescribed for pain post surgery, this often puts the patient in a position of unsupervised opioid use. This, unfortunately, can lead to opioid misuse and addiction. To help combat the opioid crisis, hospital systems have adopted programs to reduce the need for opioids. Acute pain services and multimodal analgesia protocols are two programs that hospitals and physicians use to show opioid sparing outcomes to the public, insurance companies, and government payers. These programs have proven to reduce opioid consumption, lower costs, and improve outcomes during the inpatient period. In fact, these programs have done such a good job decreasing the length of stay for major surgeries like total knee replacement that we have lost the opportunity to analyze data and prove outcomes due to the patient returning home earlier than ever before. The loss of this opioid reducing data after discharge from a hospital or clinic is the nidus for the development of RxCheckIn.
RxCheckIn is a software service that helps providers conveniently communicate with their patients after surgery as they recover at home. RxCheckIn sends secured daily text message surveys to patients. Survey responses start a system of risk analysis to determine if further communication or education is needed. It also allows patients to feel more connected to their provider without having to call an answering service or go into the office. RxCheckIn allows providers to quickly and conveniently obtain daily information to assess patient recovery. This can help mitigate complications by understanding issues before they become serious problems.
RxCheckIn’s commitment to educating and monitoring recovery compliments Confirmed Consent’s dedication to supporting patients during their perioperative experience. You can feel very secure in your patients safety,the provider is given ample time and resources back while still maintaining a relationship with their patients! We are excited for what the future holds by improving patient safety.
As always, feel free to email us with questions at info@confirmedconsent.com and check out our website to request a demo at confirmedconsent.com. Stay tuned for our next blog post!
