Table 1. Trigger algorithm development criteria.
| Criteria | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| Inclusion criteria | ||
| Examination type | Imaging order which requires a “side” modifier (e.g., knee radiograph, shoulder MRI, etc.) | |
| Demographic | All patients with imaging orders placed within local radiology department during the pilot year | |
| Ordering data discrepancy | Modifier: | Clinical history (text “contains”): |
| Left | “Right”, “ RT ”, “ R. ”, etc. | |
| Right | “Left”, “ LT “, “ L ”, etc. | |
| None | No anatomic side indicated | |
| Exclusion criteria | ||
| Bilateral examination orders | Presence of two orders of the same examination type (e.g., knee radiograph, shoulder MRI, etc.) with differing side indicators, placed within 15 minutes of each other by the same provider, and ultimately completed. a | |
| - OR - | ||
| Clinical history (text “contains”): “bilateral”, “ BIL”, “B/L,” etc. | ||
Abbreviation: MRI, magnetic resonance imaging.
a
Internal quality improvement work suggests that these data characteristics most closely reflect provider ordering behavior associated with initial intent to order bilateral examinations. Provider self-correction (retract and reordering) would involve order cancellation; the ordering time of follow-up imaging of an erroneous order would differ by more than 15 minutes.