2003 TALONS Interface and Functionality Enhancements

The Standards Review Panel recommended a number of field additions and functional upgrades to the TALONS interface software for 2003. Some of these have been due to HBCIS application upgrades, some to adding additional fields to TII previously not interfaced, and some due to specific site requests to improve management of extract processing. In addition, changes for Version 3 of the Transition application required some format changes to XVI files.

 

V3 Updates

The following programs now produce XVI30 FILES, EX.XVI.UNIX, EX.XVI.AUSL.UNIX, EX.XVI.OTHER.UNIX

These cover all XVI files including PDSFACTORS. The only change in format was to the AUSLAB XVI file and was made as follows

Invoice Line number is not sent at all so is not change.

All three programs(4 files including PDSFACTORS) output files now reflect XVI30 RATHER THAN XVI29 in the filename

 

 

A) Information Consent/Patient Consent flags

There are four new patient consent flags, governing release of patient information to third parties. Note that these are all 1 character flags. We would prefer to have TALONS write them all to the same field, (HLSYCD - Consulting Phys 1 – 10 chars, in Encounter T1HLCPP). We will then use a formula to extract them within Crystal reporting.

Flag fields are;

Workcover Queensland Consent.

File Name : ADMISSIONS

Attribute No. 115 Q-Comp Consent

Format : X

I/O Length : 1

Conv Verification : HPMI.QA.CONS

Values: Y, N, U

Action: Write to char 1 of  field ID 51, HKM4CD MRI Consulting Phys 1, Start position 467, length 10 chars

 

Motor Accident Insurance Commission Consent.

File Name : ADMISSIONS

Attribute No. 113 MAIC Consent (Queensland) 

Format : X

I/O Length : 1

Conv Verification : HPMI.QA.CONS

Values: Y, N, U

Action: Write to char 2 of  field ID 51, HKM4CD MRI Consulting Phys 1, Start position 467, length 10 chars

 

Department of Veterans Affairs Consent.

File Name : ADMISSIONS

Attribute No. 112 DVA Consent (Queensland)

Format : X

I/O Length : 1

Conv Verification : HPMI.QA.CONS

Values: Y, N, U

Action: Write to char 3 of  field ID 51, HKM4CD MRI Consulting Phys 1, Start position 467, length 10 chars

Department of Defence Consent.

File Name : ADMISSIONS

Attribute No. 114 DD Consent (Queensland)

Format : X

I/O Length : 1

Conv Verification : HPMI.QA.CONS

Values: Y, N, U

Action: Write to char 4 of  field ID 51, HKM4CD MRI Consulting Phys 1, Start position 467, length 10 chars

 

Contact Feedback indicator.

File Name : PATIENTS

Attribute No. 54 Feedback Consent Status

Format : A

I/O Length : 1

Action: Write to char 5 of  field ID 51, HKM4CD MRI Consulting Phys 1, Start position 467, length 10 chars

At 467 for 10 there will be a field with 10 “-“ this is required to ensure that leading, trailing and double blank spaces are not “trimmed”. Where data is found (and there is not much please note, a U Y or N will replace the “-“.

Sample. The “v” is at col 430

 

N) Hospital Insurance Status

This field indicates whether the patient has private insurance cover for hospital accommodation.

File Name :            FIN-STATUS

Attribute No. 25      HOSPITAL INSURANCE

Format :                 A

I/O Length :           1

Dict name :            #HOSP.INS

Action: Write to field ID 72, HKSDCD – MRI Financial Class, start 601, length 3 alpha

 

DATA.ARRAY<072> = FIN.DET<25,1,1>[1,1]"L#1" ; * FINCLASS PRIVATE INSURANCE REV.11.2003

 

M) Language

File Name : PATIENTS

Attribute No. 8 Language Spoken

Format : X

I/O Length : 4

Conv : HOSP.LANGUAGE

Native language spoken. Currently I believe language codes are 2 characters. Please check this. If we need to go to a longer TII field,  Field ID 108, HKOFCD – MRI Employer, start 747, length 10 alpha would be the preferred option.

Action: Write to field ID 107, HKSMCD – MRI Employment Status, start 745, length 2 alpha

 

DATA.ARRAY<107> = PATIENT<8,1,1>"L#2":STR(" ",8)        ;  * LANGUAGE

All codes are two digit, Field will be “nn________”, e.g. padded with spaces

 

B) Compensable Status

File Name : COMPS

Attribute No. 18 Assign Bill TO

Format : X

I/O Length : 1

Indicates party liable for compensation, if any. (ie. Workcover, MAIS, DVA, DoD.)

Action: Write to field ID 82, HKR7ST – Link Key, start position 634, length 1 char

Cancelled

C) Date of Death

File Name : PATIENTS

Attribute No. 28 - Date of Death

Format : Date

I/O Length : 4

Conv : D2

 

Date of death entered posthumously from obituary notices, or other informal advice. Requested by a number of sites at data quality. Claimed as reliable, and would give good post-hospital outcomes measure.

There is another field in the PPATIENTS file with the same attribute number, but I would hope all dates of death where known are entered on the PATIENTS file (??)

Action:Write to field ID 109, HKOGCD – Guarantor Employer, start 757, length 10 alpha

 

Done

Added to XV & XVOP – YYYMMDD__

Added to Saved Info.

 

D) Birthweight

File Name : REGISTRATION

Attribute No. 42 – Birth Weight VERSION 1 ONLY

Format : 0N

Dictionary Name : #BIRTH.WEIGHT

 

Records birth weight for babies born in hospital. (Jim, please check if this field is populated for infants. The only other field I can identify labelled “weight” are from the BIRTHS file.)

Action:

Write to field ID 79, HKD0NR - MRI Birthweight Grams, start 615, length 5 numeric

Done

IF BIRTHWEIGHT = "" AND MED.REC<12,1,1> # "" THEN BIRTHWEIGHT = MED.REC<12,1,1>"R%4" added, Birth Registration Module will be principle source, if bank, MED-REC attribute 12.

** Change applied to all sites, but priority will be data from Delivery Module.

 

 

 E) Emergency Morbidity Coding from EMG2

This is required from both EMG2 and EDIS

Action:

EMG2: File Name : CAS-REGISTER

Attribute No. 51 PROCEDURE

Format : X

I/O Length : 3

Dictionary : #PROCEDURE

Date of Service for procedures to be date of presentation.

Ordering Physician and Surgeon fields to be obtained from

File Name : CAS-REGISTER

Attribute No : 23 Doctor

Format : -

I/O Length : 5

Conv Verification : DOCTORS

Dictionary : #23

Sites will also need to extract procedure codes and descriptions from the emergency module to add to their local ICD code description tables.

Could you also quote on obtaining these from the emergency module.

 

F) Emergency Morbidity Coding from EDIS

Procedural Coding is included with the EDIS extract, as a multivalue string separated by “/” forward slashes. In a sample from CBH, some records have extensive (ie 31) procedural coding.

Action:

EDIS: Create extract XVII records for EDIS encounters, from the procedure code string present in the existing EDIS extract.

Date of Service to be the presentation date.

Ordering Physician to be obtained from the EDIS extract also.

 

Diag Codes and Procedure codes added from EMG2, Procedure codes added from EDIS. Filenames suffixed with OP

Samples from a Hospital

 

 

G) TALONS progressive processing status for satellites as well as main hospital.

 

Action: Allow sites to view progressive processing status for Satellite Site extracts as well as for the main hospital.

 

 

 

H) TMS Interface

 

There are a number of fields present within TMS which are not represented within Transition II. In particular Assisting Surgeon 1, Assisting Surgeon 2, and Anaesthetist are not present. We wish the data elements present within the ORMIS extract, and passed to TII, to be obtained from TMS as well where possible.

Action: Where possible, obtain the same data elements and products from the TMS system, as are currently being extracted from ORMIS.

Cancelled

 

  

I) Separate processing for Satellite MR and utilisation extracts

Some sites (eg Palm Island) have significant delays in entering ATD data as well as utilisation. Sites wish to have the option of separately processing extracts XV as well as XVI for each Satellite Site.

Action: Allow satellite medical record and utilisation extracts to be run independently of main hospital extract processes.

 

J) Add new department mapping screen to all sites.

Wave 1 sites have an additional TALONS menu item used for mapping new Feeder System Departments to TII departments. (Labelled “Identify New Departments”. All sites wish to have access to this screen.

Action: Add “Identify New Departments” TALONS menu item for all sites.

 

Menu Entry will be “New Wards, Units & Clinics”

 

Output will be similar to below

 

The Current Default printer queue and options will display e.g. NAM-J-TRAN2 HS, If you wish the job to print immediately rather than as a hold file, change the HS option if shown H is for Hold file, S is to suspend printing, choosing XXXX H will print immediately, but create a hold file. HS creates a hold file and Suspends printing, and S creates a suspended file that will erase on printing. Simple. You may also select an alternate queue, contact your IS dept to identify the names of printer queues you may wish to use. If all else fails, a “STANDARD HS” entry will create a Hold file what you can copy to your Unix directory and FTP server using the Talons Spooler utility. See Print Spooler Access.

 

K) Re-extract all encounters by Discharge Fiscal Year parameter.

Often, for various reasons, sites need to re-extract all inpatient encounters for a fiscal year.

Action: Amend extract XV processing options to allow sites to extract ALL inpatient encounters discharged during a fiscal year.

 

Note: In TII, Discharge Fiscal Year is labelled “2003” for the 2002/2003 financial year. The DFY parameter in TALONS should also follow this convention.

 

Menu item is “Flag Financial Year XV Disch” on codes setup menu.

 

All discharges from 1^st July to 30^thJune in years specified will be flagged.  

 

 

PLEASE NOTE, Flagging for re-sending will not override cut-off date set as per below when starting extracts, you must set this date so it includes the records you have flagged. In the example above, the date would need to be 1/7/2001

 

 

 

L) Sites to have option to specify precedence rules for attachment of utilisation to APP2 clinics occurring on the same day.

The issue identified where two separate attendances are being recorded on APP2 for the same day, and the first is “stealing” utilisation from the second, is localised to a small number of sites. However, a general business rules governing utilisation attachment in these cases problematic. Sites would prefer the option of specifying precedence rules, where there are demonstrated instances of APP2 clashes.

Action: Develop an interface allowing each site to specify precedence rules for utilisation attachment where more than one APP2 clinic attendance occurs in a single day.

Cancelled

We have agreed that a list of CLINICS to be excluded from the Episode Index will be kept, this will ensure no other utilisation other than the “Clinic Attendance” is ever linked to that episode. As part of the installation, the APP.EPISODES file will need to be cleared of INDEX entries already made to the Undesired Clinics, or better still completely cleared, it is re-built during processing. This program is not the same at all sites, for reasons not known and will require custom modification at many sites.

The reason for implementing in this way was that after analysis of the problem, it was apparent that there were some clinics held on the same day that should not have had other utilisation linked to them. Further analysis indicated that the “same day” part of the issue was in fact irrelevant and that excluding certain clinics like Allied Health or Blood tests Clinic (where appointments are managed in APP) from creating episodes for other utilisation to link to was a better solution with much simpler administration, and that also addressed the same day issues reported.

 

This is implemented using a screen accessed from the Codes Steup Menu “App Clinic Episode Xcludes”