Epic Tips

The Epic EMR has a built-in functionality to use smartphrases, macros that auto-populate text, lab values, vitals, etc. You will want to steal a list of macros from your co-residents. Some useful phrases include, but are not limited to, follow-up instructions with the individual clinics at MGH and the Brigham, discharge instructions, medication instructions, etc.

A recent email from Dr. Dutta sent out a list of smartlinks that you can use in your note templates. These same smartlinks are available on the fly as well if preceded with a period instead of bookended by at signs. (E.G. .prob would pull in the problem list but @PROB@ in a template would auto-populate it as soon as you start that note.)

Encounter Date: @ED@

Chief complaint: @RFV@

Problem List: @PROB@

PMH: @PMH@

PSH: @PSH@

Home Meds: @PHSIPPTAMEDS@

Allergies: @ALLERGY@

Social History:
Social history @SOCX@
Drug History @DRUGHX@
Familiy History @FAMHX@

ED Triage Vitals
Temp @FLOW(6:FIRST:1)@ HR @FLOW(8:FIRST:1)@ BP @FLOW(5:FIRST:1)@ RR @FLOW(9:FIRST:1)@ Sat @FLOW(10:FIRST:1)@ on @FLOW(301030:FIRST:1)@

(I made this so it always pulls the first value of each of these flowsheets, you can copy and paste the whole line in if you want)

Labs: @EDTHISVISIT@  (this pulls in every lab that was ordered after ED arrival in a nice table format, we’re working on a different link that will not bring in labs after they are inpatient but it’s not ready yet)

Radiology  @WETREAD@  (this pulls in every imaging test that was ordered after ED arrival, we’re working on a different link that will not bring in labs after they are inpatient but it’s not ready yet)

Consults  @EDCONENCORD@

ED Medications:  @PHSEDMEDS@  (meds ordered/administered in the ED, this smartlink is NEW and BETTER than @EDMEDS@ as it stops pulling in meds given after they are inpatient)

Trauma Surveys: (this will pull in the first value of each flowsheet row in the trauma primary and secondary survey; I have a separate note smartphrase that has this table in it)

Trauma documentation as called out by the resident, scribed by the nurse:

This is how it will look in your note:

Diagnosis: @DIAGX@  (this is the diagnosis link I like the most)

Clinical Calculators:
Most of the clinical calculators have associated smartlinks that I built to pull the related content into your note, for example you can click on values in the Canadian head CT clinical calculator (if you’ve never used this before, it’s probably in your rarely used folder under More Activities on the bottom left).  After doing that, once you are in your note type .canadianheadct to bring in that content into your note.  I’m working on a way to bring that content into your note automatically, but that’s not ready yet.