The “Patient Input” screen (Figure 1.2) provides the current admission summary for any given patient, including operative procedures, complications, and past medical history items. Admission notes are included for complex patients.
For operations, the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) is used to prevent duplication. In most instances, the only typing that needs to be done is the patient demographics (Name, DOB, and MRN), and operation detail (optional). All other information is drawn from drop-down, point-and-click style boxes. These boxes make data entry very economical, and ensures consistency of auditing, minimising spelling errors.