The clinic's breakthrough came in the form of an automated electronic health record (EHR) alert integrated within the widely used Epic system.
Introduced in May 2024, this alert flagged any patient who was overdue for a critical lab test—the hepatitis B DNA test, a marker essential for assessing viral load and guiding therapeutic decisions.
By systematically surfacing this care gap during routine visits, the alert embedded proactive monitoring directly into the clinic's existing workflows.
Among 104 patients with chronic hepatitis B managed within the clinic, those not requiring concurrent liver cancer screening exhibited a remarkable increase in timely hepatitis B DNA test completion—from 34 percent prior to the alert to 51 percent afterward.
Technically, the alert leverages Epic's sophisticated care gap module, which continuously analyzes patient records against evidence-based guidelines to identify overdue preventive services and tests.
Once triggered, the alert prompts clinical staff within the standard workflow, accompanied by actionable recommendations to order the necessary hepatitis B DNA assay.
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