Page 62 - OB Risks - Delivering the Goods (Part One)

SVMIC Obstetrics Risks: Delivering the Goods

Tracking

Tracking labs and diagnostic test results, tracking referred
patients and following up on missed or cancelled appointments,

is essential to avoiding delays in diagnosis and/or treatment.
Patients are often “lost to follow-up” and may fall through the

cracks if an abnormal test result is scanned into electronic
medical record without taking appropriate action.

Based upon our review of closed obstetrical and gynecological

claims, the failure to handle test results appropriately resulted in
33 percent of all obstetrical and gynecological systems issues.

These issues included claims where there was a failure to:

• Follow up on abnormal test results

• Failure to track test results

• Failure to notify a patient of test results

These failures were not limited to only test orders during office

visits, but also included test results received as part of inpatient
workup. As a general rule, all tests ordered by a physician

remain the ordering physician’s responsibility to track receipt
thereof and act accordingly. However, any time a test result is

received, even if you were not the ordering physician but may
have been involved in the patient’s care at that time, you also

have some duty to ensure results are delivered to the ordering
physician, or if required, the appropriate actions are taken in a

timely manner. This also applies to pathology results for samples
submitted postpartum. If the results are not available prior to

sending the patient home, a tracking system to monitor the
receipt of that report must be put into place in order to ensure

that the patient is notified of the results as soon as they are
available.

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