7. Collect Initial Medical Specimens (UA/Blood)

During the admission process, patients are tested for drugs and alcohol to assess the severity of their use. Continuous testing throughout the treatment monitors progress and identifies additional health risks to inform the treatment plan. Patients in telehealth programs may need to visit a lab or send specimens by mail to the facility’s lab partner.

Note: This process only describes the admissions process for clients not using a CRM or integrated RCM platform. 

Validate Facesheet and Document Breathalyzer Results

Complete facesheet validation and the Breathalyzer Results form regardless of how you process other medical specimens. 

Step 1: Validate Facesheet

1. Select the desired patient and click the Edit Patient button in the Information tab.
2. Scroll down and click Validate Form to reduce invalid patient errors. This ensures all necessary information is correctly entered. You will not be able to submit lab requisitions until the patient's facesheet is validated. 
   

Step 2: Breathalyzer Test

1. Click on the New Document icon in the patient's chart.
2. Search for and select the Breathalyzer Test Results form.
3. Fill out the breathalyzer form and click Sign & Submit.

Best Practice Lab Order Workflows Based on Lab Integration

Workflow 1: Facility’s Lab Integrates with the Kipu EMR

Enter a lab order in the Lab Order tab that includes a statement of medical necessity. 

User Permissions: A user with the Lab Requisition Operator, Super Admin, or Records Admin role collects a specimen from the patient. This user is usually a nurse, phlebotomist, tech, or rarely a doctor.

Best Practice Workflow Video

Facility has Standard Integrated Lab Interface

1. Enter Lab Order: Navigate to the Lab Orders tab and create a new lab order, including a statement of medical necessity.

   

   For detailed instructions on creating lab orders, click here.

2. Collect Specimen: Collect the specimen according to your facility's requirements.

3. Create and Complete Requisition: Follow these instructions for creating and completing a new requisition found here.

   
   • Scan the barcode and add it to the specimen or print and attach the label. We recommend using the scanner since it doesn’t require additional printers or drivers. 
   • Ensure the requisition is sent before the specimen, so the lab can match them correctly.
   • Verify all specimens are scanned into the Kipu EMR before shipment. 
   • Note: Requisitions often contain additional questions such as AOEs or Point of Care (POC) initial results. Some facilities will complete the screen after receiving the specimen from a third-party collector, but most facilities answer these additional questions at the time of collection.

4. Send Specimen:

   • Send the specimen with the scanned barcode to the lab. Some states require a printed copy of the requisition to be shipped along with the specimen. 
   • We recommend only positive results be sent to the lab to confirm results. 

Facility Integrates with LabCorp

Facilities using LabCorp require more patient information fields than Kipu traditionally captures. Click here for more information if your facility integrates with LabCorp. 

Workflow 2 & 3: Facility’s Lab Doesn’t Integrate with Kipu or Facility Doesn’t Send Labs

Let's review our best practice workflow for collecting specimens and documenting results if the lab you work with is not integrated with the Kipu EMR or you don't send labs out for testing. 

Best Practice Workflow Video 

Facility’s Lab Doesn’t Integrate with Kipu or Facility Doesn’t Send Labs

1. Add Doctor’s Order:

   • Navigate to the Doctor’s Orders tab and click Quick Order.
   • Select an admission protocol with a statement of medical necessity.
   • Or, select an action order with a statement of medical necessity.
   • Click the Review Order button.
2. Collect Specimen: Collect the specimen from the patient.
   • Med Log: Mark Yes on the Action Order on the Med Log to document the collection of the specimen.

3. Document Drug Screen: Click the New Document icon at the top of the facesheet and add the Drug Screen form for POC/Quick Cup documentation.

4. Send Lab Requestion: Send the lab requisition by mail, pick-up, or other means provided by the lab, if applicable.

5. Document Lab Results:

   • When the results are returned, document the patient’s lab result in the Drug Screen form.
   • Click Sign & Submit after completing the form.

Important: If a facility documents lab orders using action orders and/or records results within an evaluation, this information will not transfer to the lab portal if the facility later decides to integrate a lab with the Kipu EMR. Instead, users will need to manually re-enter active lab orders through the Lab Order tab once lab integration is implemented in their instance.

Workflow 4: Facility with In-House Lab or Analyzer

This is our best practice workflow for collecting and documenting results for facilities that aren’t integrated with a lab and have an in-house lab or analyzer. 

User Permissions: A user with the Lab Requisition Operator, Super Admin, or Records Admin role collects a specimen from the patient. This user is usually a nurse, phlebotomist, tech, or rarely a doctor. 

1. Enter Lab Order: Enter the lab order in the Lab Order tab, including a statement of medical necessity. For detailed instructions on lab interface orders, click here.
2. Collect Specimen: Collect the specimen from the patient.
3. Use Facility’s Analyzer: Use the facility's analyzer to gather initial results.
4. Label and Send Specimen Out for Confirmation (if needed):
   • If confirming with a lab, create the requisition, scan the barcode, and attach it to the specimen. Print the requisition to include with the specimen shipment, if required by your state.
   • The requisition must be sent before the specimen so that the lab can identify which requisition the specimen belongs to. The facility should also verify that all specimens are scanned into the EMR before shipment to the lab. 
   • Send the specimen and barcode to the lab by mail, courier, or drop-off.

Scheduling Follow-up Appointment

Regardless of the workflow used to analyze the collected specimen, once tests have been sent, schedule a follow-up appointment with the physician using the Scheduler. For more information on adding appointments to the Scheduler, click here.