Patient Summary Customization

Summary Page Customization

The Problem

As a speciality doctor, I want the ability to decide what data shows up on my summary page so that my system does not show me information that I do not care about.

In version 7.10, the patient summary page was redesigned. As a result, users lost the ability to customize their patient summary page at this time. In 9.10, after repeated user requests, I was able to address this loss of functionality.

Goals of the design:

Return functionality to the users that was removed due to the redesign of the component it controlled.
Address the new sections added to the summary page since that functionality existed.
Improve upon the old window’s aesthetics and interaction model with a modern, updated look and feel.

Major Challenges of this redesign:

I was not around when this functionality existed so I was unfamiliar with and needed to do research on workflows the users were very familiar with.
There were two previous iterations of a window customizing the summary page, tab order, and encounter note section order. Both windows had varying functionality and some users favored one over another.
How to make it clear which window controlled which navigation set up? A visual guide would be best but difficult to make intuitive.

Previous setup window (The window remained in the system but did mostly nothing)

Brainstorming, Notes, Interaction Model

Visited customer Ideas page and searched for all user ideas, complaints, and enhancement requests related to patient summary page customization
Prioritized ideas by usability requirements
Began bulleted Design Document
Began list of questions
This window needed to control the section/tab order for three different areas of EHR: Patient Chart Summary sections, Chart Navigation button order, and the Encounter Note order
- The Encounter Note customization was at first determined to be too risky and costly in terms of resources to redesign, and so the decision to embed the existing model in the new window was determined to be the most prudent course of action. (Later the developers realized it was ‘cheaper’ to just redo the entire window.)

The Chart Navigation button order was vertical. This lends itself well to a simple drag-and-drop list interaction model.
The Patient Chart Summary is a left then right, down a line, left then right section order. We worried the users would not intuitively grasp a single drag-and-drop list. Early attempts were made to create a two column drag-and-drop list. It was determined too risky.

Wireframe Mockups and Early Usability Testing

Began rough mockups in Balsamiq
Discussed list of questions and complaints with users during a focus group
Focus groups responded well to a single column drag-and-drop list for both the chart navigation button order and the patient chart summary section order
Added to the design scope hiding a section or button
Began listing rules for developers
- Examples:
  - A new window “Patient Chart Setup” should be created and the old window removed.
  - There should be three tabs on the new window: Chart Navigation Order, Chart Summary Order, Encounter Detail Order.
  - The bottom of the window should have a Save and a Cancel button.
  - The save button will apply for all total changes made in the tabs, not only the tab being displayed at the time the save button is clicked.

A wireframe design iteration of the chart navigation window

A wireframe design iteration of the chart navigation window

A wireframe design iteration of Chart Summary Order

A wireframe design iteration of the chart summary tab

A wireframe design of the Encounter panel

Final Mockups, Design Document

Acted as a liaison between the developers and visual designer to gather consensus on a single column drag-and-drop model after focus group feedback showed the users found it intuitive enough
Updated design document rules and mockups
Addressed any small concerns that came up during development
- The design team requested that while the developers were in the code, to check if they could do the same customization for the “Today Panel”, which is visible on the summary page. It was determined to be very little extra effort and so the users gained a new enhancement on top of regaining old functionality. This was added to the Summary Page tab as that panel is visible with the summary sections.
User feedback said they were very pleased to be able to customize again and liked the drag-and-drop model which had previously not been used in Intergy EHR.