Note for Ontario Users: In Ontario, Ocean eConsults are currently in a limited release. For more information on eConsult in Ontario as part of the Ontario eServices Program, please review the Overview of eConsults in Ontario article.
After you have found a specialist is a match for your patient, you must send them an Ocean eConsult request. In this request, you will include relevant information about the patient.
How to send a new eConsult request
Clicking on a specialist that you want to send an eConsult request to causes additional information to appear within the Ocean Heathmap. You should see the specialist's listing description, contact information and specific health services that they offer.
Underneath this information, click the blue "Send Ocean eConsult" button to begin the request process.
eConsult Form
The eConsult form tied to the specialist's listing will now appear with the following relevant fields.
- Patient Information
- This area includes demographic information about the patient that has been automatically pulled from their EMR chart. If you are accessing this form from the Ocean Portal, please note that this information will have to be manually entered.
- Reason for Referral
- Here, you will type in relevant information as to why you are referring the patient to this specialist.
- History
- You can include pertinent family history in this text box.
- Include CPP
- Checking this box will allow you to review and include cumulative patient profile values with the eConsult request. If you have accessed the Ocean Healthmap from your EMR, you might notice a number of these values have been pulled from the patient's chart.
- Add Attachments
- Clicking this box allows you to locate and select a file or files in your computer that need to be included with the eConsult request. After adding a file, you can preview it by clicking on the purple eye icon or remove it by clicking the red X.
For Accuro users: You can also add attachments to eConsult requests through the Generate Letter workflow that is explained here.
- Sender's Information
- This section includes information about the individual sending the request. This will be automatically pulled from your Ocean user account. To update any information in this area, you can click the edit icon on the righthand side.
- Send eConsult
- Clicking this button will cause an "Obtain Patient's Email Consent" window to appear. This prompts you to either permit (if consent was obtained from the patient) or decline (if consent was not obtained) emailed notifications to the patient related to important status updates. Next, a "Confirm Clinical Information" window will appear where you can confirm the patient's name and age along with your Ocean site and user account details. Clicking "Proceed" brings up a receipt confirming that the eConsult was sent successfully.
Accessing a Record of the eConsult Request
- From the patient's chart in Med Access, click "Tasks".
- You will see a newly generated progress note containing a summary of the eConsult request.
- From the patient's chart in Accuro, click "Virtual Chart" and search the "Documents" section.
- The request will be visible here. Double clicking will expand it into a larger window.
- When the receipt confirming your eConsult request was sent successfully appears, you will notice that all of the information contained within it is automatically highlighted.
- Copy this text and manually paste it into the patient's chart in your EMR.