Description
The Orthopaedic Radiograph Appropriateness Criteria (ORAC) is a local imaging guideline to help referring physicians make appropriate image ordering decisions. These criteria benchmark the selection of the most appropriate imaging or treatments and is developed by consensus with input from EM and family medicine physicians, radiographers, MSK radiologists, orthopaedic surgeons and hand surgeons.
The current system for ORAC is ineffective and inefficient due to its long and confusing nature. The information is presented in non-user friendly chunks of paragraphs and can be hard to keep track of for doctors when they have to diagnose patients. This tiresome duty takes up a significant portion of doctors’ time and is considered a non-value added work. Thus, many doctors completely bypass referencing the current ORAC unless absolutely necessary. Given this, the final decision made by different doctors may be different than what the evidence and expert opinion suggest. This may lead to mistakes in judgments and lack of standardization.
The solution that will be proposed is an interactive web application that is able to synthesize data from the PDFs provided in a manner that is readable and flows better with their current workflow. The proposed solution will incentivize doctors to consult qualified appropriate use criteria when ordering imaging for patients. The solution aims to support imaging departments in the planning and implementation of imaging IT strategy and to address the challenges related to digitization and improving patient outcomes.