About
Admitting
In any hospital, the Admitting role is critical to support not only hospital operations, but they also directly impact patient care. Without Admitting, patients would not be registered timely, billing would be inaccurate, and patient care would be delayed. As patients are registered, their records are fed into TeleTracking and when patients are admitted to beds, we can accurately view the hospital census in real time. Admitting has limited functionality in TeleTracking, however, they can view bed request activity as new patients are arriving at the hospital to help aid them in the registration process.
This guide provides step-by-step instructions for the functionality needed to complete the designed Patient Flow processes and workflows specific to the department.
Logging In/Out
To Log In
Launch TeleTracking and input your User Login ID and Password. Click the Sign In button.
From the Clinical Operations menu, click the PreAdmitTracking® option.
You will now see the Admitting console view
To Log Out
In the upper-right corner of the page, click the sign-out or end-session link.
End session - if you are signed into more than one session or workstation, select end session to end the current session.
Sign out - if you are signed into multiple sessions (or multiple workstations), sign out will close all sessions on all workstations.
Screen Alerts
Screen Alerts are the primary communication tool used by Admitting staff. Once Screen Alerts are activated, Admitting can manage all communication related to Bed Requests as well as receive free text Instant Notify messages from departments. By using Screen Alerts, Admitting will see a significant reduction in the number of phone calls related to bed requests, allowing staff to focus on placement tasks without constant interruption.
Activating Screen Alerts
From the home screen, click on the My Notifications tab to display the Delivery Methods section.
In the Deliver My Notifications Via section, click the gray Disabled button. It will now show Enabled and will be Green.
Click Save
Once saved, click Sign Out in the top right corner and Log back in.
You will now see the Alerts button at the top of your screen.
You will see the following potential Alert activity:
Screen Alerts only need to be enabled once per user. Alerts will continue to display unless disabled in My Notifications.
Alerts (messages) will stay in the Alerts box until you delete them. It is best to delete your alerts (messages) once you have read them.
If an alert or message is sent to more than one person, deleting the message in your account will NOT delete the message for other users
Bed Requests
Viewing bed requests is an essential piece of patient flow for Admitting. As bed requests are entered into the system, Admitting will be provided with valuable information that will allow them to update patient records in the ADT System. Bed requests will come from all intake areas including ED as well as Direct Admissions.
Viewing Bed Request Information
If a bed request is relevant to Admitting, a notification is sent in the form of a screen Alert. Admitting will have access to the patient record and can review the information provided. The information provided may trigger Admitting to update information in the ADT System. For example, diagnosis. Admitting will also be notified as new Direct Admits requests are entered so they can complete the quick registration prior to the patient’s arrival if appropriate.
Once a Screen Alert message is received for a bed request, either click directly in the message or identify the patient from the appropriate tab and click on their name.
The Patient/Placement Details box opens, and you can review the information in the request. You will see the following:
Admit Diagnosis
Associated Physicians
Level of Care
Admit Type
Patient Type
Isolation
Patient Custom Attributes
Comments-if applicable
Origin Unit
Target Unit (Direct Admits)
Assigned Bed (Direct Admits)
Once the information is reviewed update any appropriate information in the ADT system.
Save and Close the record.
Note: If the Bed Request is a Direct Admit, you should expect the patient to arrive in Admitting to complete their registration. If the patient reports to the ED, the ED can also see the Direct Admit list and will direct the patient to Admitting. If the patient presents directly to their bed, the unit will send an Instant Notify message to alert Admitting.
Patient Search
Specific patient records can be found by using the Patient Search functionality. Patient Search will allow you to search for any patient that is registered in your ADT system.
Left-click on the Patient Search icon.
In the Search Text field, type the patient’s Visit Number and select the Visit Number search option from the drop-down menu. Click Search to see the results.
NOTE: Visit Number is the preferred search method in order to ensure the correct patient is being used.
ADT Intercept
The ADT Intercept tool is used when making changes to a patient record in the ADT System that prevent changes from impacting other patient records in TeleTracking. For example, if you need to make a billing change to a discharged patient and it requires readmitting the discharged patient back into their inpatient bed.
NOTE: If this tool is not used appropriately, it will negatively impact Patient Placement and Nursing Unit views in TeleTracking by discharging current patients.
Blocking Patient ADT Transactions
From the Admin Tool Menu, select ADT Intercept.
Admin - Settings- Capacity Management
The ADT Intercept page will open.
Click on the Add button in the upper right corner.
Type the patient Visit Number in the Patient ID column
Choose the amount of time to intercept the record. 15 minutes is the default.
Click Save when complete.
You will now see the time messages will resume, the patient’s name, and the bed.
You can now make changes in the ADT System.
NOTE: You can add multiple records if needed.
Resuming Patient ADT Transactions
Once you have completed all the changes in ADT System, you can either let the messages resume on their own once the Intercepted Until arrives, or you can manually resume the feed.
From the Admin Tool Menu, select ADT Intercept.
Admin - Settings- Capacity Management
The ADT Intercept page will open.
Click the check box next to the patient’s record.
Click on Resume ADT.
The patient record(s) will be removed from the ADT Intercept list.
NOTE: You can resume multiple records if needed.
Instant Notify Communication
Sending An Instant Notify
Click the Instant Notify icon to open the Instant Notify dialog box.
In the Search Users and Groups field, type a few letters of the User or Group to find the recipient. Repeat the process for additional recipients.
Type the contents in the Message section then click Send. You will see a notification at the top of the box that confirms the message has been sent.
Click cancel when finished to close the Instant Notify box.
NOTES:
Be careful not to hit the Send button multiple times. Each time you click the button, the message will resend.
If an Instant Notify is being sent to 25 or more users, you will get a pop-up message alerting you that you are sending the message to a large group of users. This is normal application behavior and you are OK to proceed.
These messages are reportable so be mindful of the message content.
Replying To An Instant Notify
Access the Screen Alerts dialog box by clicking on the Alerts icon at the top of the screen.
The Screen Alerts page opens. To the right of each received message are two columns, Reply and Reply All. Click the appropriate option.
Compose the message and click, Send.
Blocked Bed Functionality
When a patient is currently occupying a bed and a Visit Number change is required, Admitting should Block the location involved in order to prevent the transactions from notifying EVS that a bed needs to be cleaned. This is most commonly used for hospice conversions. The process should be as follows:
Prior to completing any changes in the ADT system, Admitting should block the location.
Once the location is blocked, Admitting can complete the work in the ADT system.
Once ADT System work is finished, Admitting can unblock the location.
NOTE: If this process is not used, EVS will get notified when you discharge the current inpatient that the bed needs to be cleaned. We want to avoid this happening especially in sensitive situations when hospice patients are involved.
Blocking A Bed
Click on the electronic whiteboard icon and choose the appropriate bedboard.
Identify the bed that needs to be blocked and click on the bed. This will take you directly to Bed Information.
Click on the Bed Status button.
A new box will open, click on the Action drop-down and select Block Location.
Once selected, you will see the Reason column available. Select the appropriate reason and click, Submit.
The Bed Status will update to show the new status
Unblocking A Bed
Click on the electronic whiteboard icon and choose the appropriate bedboard.
Identify the bed that needs to be unblocked and click on the bed. This will take you directly to Bed Information.
Click on the Bed Status button.
A new box will open, click on the Action drop-down and select Release Block.
Once Selected, you will see the New Status column available. Select the clean status and click, Submit.
The Bed Status will update to show the bed is occupied.
Patient Transport Functionality
Requesting Patient Transport
To request Transport for a patient, find the appropriate patient and click on the Transport Status field.
NOTE: If the patient is not on your tab view, you can use Patient Search to find their record.
The Patient Transport History dialog displays. Click on the Add Patient Request button.
The Transport Request will open. The following fields need to be addressed:
Origin (if it auto-populates, verify for accuracy)
Destination
Mode of Travel
Isolation Type
Job Status
Travel Requirements
Setting Origin or Destination
Click on the magnifying glass icon, next to each field. The Find a Location box will appear
In the Search Text field, type the name/room # of the location.
Click in the Check All box to select all units.
Click the Click to Search button. You will see the search results in the Location Results box.
Click on the location and it will highlight Blue. Click on the Select Location Button. You will now see your location displayed in the Origin or Destination field.
Mode of Travel
Select the appropriate Mode of Travel from the drop-down menu
Isolation Type
Verify that the Isolation is correct
NOTE: If the patient has an isolation set in their record, this field will already display an Isolation
Job Status
Pending – Job will be sent to the first available transporter (Admitting should always use Pending)
Travel Requirements
To set, highlight requirements in the Available box
Use the arrow to move to the Selected box
This can also be done in reverse to remove items
Now that the fields are completed, click on Save to complete the request. At the top of the Transport Request box, you will now see the job displaying the Job Status you selected.
Cancelling A Transport Request
Allows for the Transport job to be canceled and removed from the list of transport requests.
Click on the Cancel button in the Transport Request.
You will now be prompted to select a Reason Code to explain why the job needs to be canceled.
Item Transport Functionality
Requesting Item Transport
In Capacity IQ® Transport click on the Item Trans icon from the toolbar at the top of the screen.
The Item Transport Request box will display. Complete the following fields:
Item Type (choose from the drop-down menus
Origin
Destination
NOTE: Selecting Origins and Destinations for Items is the same as in a patient transport request.
Click Save. You will now see the job in a Pending Status.