Better meetings with the patient through digital tools

This year, respondent number 900,000 was registered in EG CheckWare – and it was Akershus University Hospital (Ahus) that reached this milestone. This is celebrated with cake for the staff at DPS Nedre Romerike, where digital health services are a natural part of everyday life.

At the General Outpatient Clinic A, DPS Nedre Romerike, the implementation of digital solutions such as EG CheckWare has led to significant changes in work methods for both clinicians and patients. Specialist psychologist Nils Arne Kværnhaug and psychologist Alice Nordquist describe clear benefits in meetings with patients.

– Surveys are sent out prior to the first meeting with the patient, which gives an impression of the patient's condition and knowledge of what the patient experiences as most challenging. This allows the clinician to tailor the conversation accordingly and be more targeted, says Nils Arne Kværnhaug.

The digital surveys are used not only before treatment begins but also function as support throughout the treatment process. They provide clinicians with a better basis to follow the patient’s development over time.

– One can use completed surveys as a “guide” on how to frame one’s own questions. It is also useful to look at during treatment to see if the treatment is effective, explains Alice Nordquist.

The efficiency gains are particularly noticeable in administrative work. The clinicians point to significant time savings related to documentation and record-keeping.

– It greatly streamlines record-keeping after assessments – super time-saving!

Especially useful in comprehensive assessments

According to the psychologists, certain patient groups have particularly benefited from digital solutions. This notably includes patients undergoing assessment for autism spectrum disorders and ADHD.

– It is especially useful for patients assessed for autism spectrum disorder and ADHD because these are extensive assessments that involve a lot of documentation. It is efficient to have digital surveys that deliver reports directly into the records.

Better meetings with patients through digital tools

The use of digital tools has also proven valuable in the treatment of PTSD patients.

– It feels useful to me that PTSD patients can be reassured that the treatment has had an effect when they see they report lower symptom pressure. The results can also be used to adjust treatment that is ineffective, whether for PTSD treatment or other therapies.

Clear benefits for clinicians

For clinicians using EG CheckWare in their daily work, the advantages are many. Digital surveys provide easier access to necessary tools, reduce error margins, and offer continuous insight into the patient’s progression.

– I find that I save time on documentation and that I get an opportunity to “check” the patient’s progress as symptom measurements are regularly sent out and recorded in the journal.

– There is no need to track down paper versions of assessments, and one knows it is always available on the computer. Time is also saved on scoring results and any scoring errors are minimized.

Routine data as a basis for quality work

The use of CheckWare enables not only better individual treatment but also the collection of valuable routine data. At the R&D department at Ahus, these data are used in an internal quality assurance project.

– We use clinical routine data from the core battery in an internal quality assurance project on the quality of treatment in general outpatient clinics. So far, we have worked on the completeness and quality of the data. Currently, it seems that there is a lot of noise in the data, meaning the forms are used too irregularly to effectively describe change in patients during treatment. For the future, it will be important that the method is thoroughly implemented in daily clinical practice to use them for analyzing change at the group level, and that good measures exist for condition at the end of treatment, which we currently lack, says Johan Siqveland and Mathea Fretheim Walle.

At DPS Nedre Romerike, digital tools appear as an integrated part of more efficient and quality-assured patient care – benefiting both patients and clinicians.

We at EG CheckWare are certainly proud of the great work our customers do, and it is gratifying to see that digital tools lead to better meetings with patients. Cake is well deserved!

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