EMIS HOOF Wizard            

Let's clean up this mess!

My name's Ian Rubenstein, I'm a GP at Eagle House Surgery, Enfield and I'm really hoofed off with this oxygen business.

We've had free oxygen in our atmosphere for 2 billion years but trust the NHS to cause the first oxygen shortage since the Proterozoic Eon...

I'm "champing at the bit" to sort this out and as we've all got computers in primary care let the computers do it all.  After all, it's "horses for courses"...

Notes to current users:

• This form and webpage was last updated on Monday 8th May 2006
• The last update of this form (3rd April 2006) explicitly added the patient's postcode in addition to the standard EMIS mail merge address block. Some forms had been returned due to lack of postcode!
• This latest update automatically inserts the surgery address lines for you. You may want to add your surgery name above address line 1.
• This latest update automatically inserts the surgery telephone number in the three positions indicated on the form (blocks 3, 5 and 15). This is the surgery main contact number generated by EMIS. You may wish to use a different number. If you do just overwrite the EMIS mail merge variable ~[Surgery Tel No.] with the new number.
• Remember to fill in your surgery fax number (blocks 3, 5 and 15) and PCT or Local Health Board (block 5).
• Some practices have experienced forms returned due to failure to fill in the flow-rate in the Short Burst Oxygen section. This is an error on the part of the oxygen suppliers. When oxygen is given via ventimask (which is how short burst oxygen should always be given) the flow rate is always 2 litres per minute and does not have to be specified.  You could always phone up the suppliers and talk to the supervisor who will agree that this is the case or just enter "2" when this question comes up in the wizard.

This is work in progress and I would appreciate any feedback. I have developed this specifically for EMIS LV version 5.0. Feedback from users is that it does not work with the GUI version of EMIS (GV) or PCS. For these practices and non-EMIS practices I have created an editable electronic version of the HOOF form. At the very least you can store it on your system and print out this version prior to filling it out by hand.

There is now an editable electronic version of the HOCF (home oxygen consent form).

I have no connection with EMIS however they have put this website as a link in their on-line handbook.

I have tested this on my own surgery system and it works well. Most other practices that have downloaded it have not had any problems with the form. One practice noticed that when they filled the form out their terminal hung when trying to save it as an attachment. This was probably due to the way their system was configured. The worst that happened was that they had to end the EMIS terminal software and re-start it on the affected machine. However please note that you use this at your own risk (see the disclaimer below).

The HOOF Wizard will take you through the steps needed to complete the form, help with relevant info, pull the patient data out of EMIS together with your responses and then create the form.

It tries to explain what you should be doing so that it holds your hand all the way through the process. I obtained the information from the NHS Primary Care Contracting Home Care Oxygen website and by phoning up and quizzing some suppliers.

I hope you all find it useful and not too verbose. Let me know, you can find my email address either on DNUK or by going to my website's home page.

You can also download the HOCF wizard which automatically generates the required consent form.

So, bearing the above disclaimer in mind, let's "saddle up", "ride out of here" and all breathe a lot more freely. By the way, this stuff's free so don't "look a gift horse in the mouth".  No "neigh saying"...

What to do

1. Download the HOOF Wizard by clicking here which takes you to the bottom of this page.

2. Open it up in Microsoft Word and insert your own surgery details

Make sure that you insert your surgery details into the document where the dummy details are in section 3 in bold lettering. Note that confusingly, section 3 carries on and the last part of it is below section 4. Who designed this form?!

By the way, when you open up the document to edit it,  it looks a mess at first sight but that's just because the EMIS mail merge codes get in the way. They are stripped out when the wizard is complete.

Make sure that you don't alter anything that says ~[some text here] as it messes up the way EMIS handles the document

3. Copy the HOOF Wizard to your EMIS server

Click on My Network Places and you should see your server show up. It will probably show up as something like "EMIS 367" or some such. Find the MS Word User Documents folder on the server. If you use the PMA templates to fill out your insurance medicals that's the folder you need. Copy the HOOF Wizard to that folder.

4. Open the HOOF Wizard with the current patient.

As for PMA reports. If you aren't used to this then:

1. Open the patient you want to obtain oxygen for in consultation mode.

2. Press F3

4. Press WP

5. Press W

6. Press K

You should then be able to select the HOOF Wizard from a windows file selection box.

The HOOF Wizard may take a few seconds to load.

5. Go through the pop-up questions.

6. Email me to let me know what you think!

7. Somebody get me a bag of oats!

Please read the disclaimer below. If you agree to this click on the accept button to download the HOOF Wizard.

DISCLAIMER

THE AUTHOR MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED (BY STATUTE OR OTHERWISE) RELATING TO THE PERFORMANCE, QUALITY MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OF THE HOOF WIZARD. THE AUTHOR SHALL BE IN NO WAY LIABLE IN RESPECT OF ANY COSTS, CLAIMS, LOSSES, LIABILITIES, DAMAGES AND EXPENSES INCURRED DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY IN RESPECT OF THE USE OF THE HOOF WIZARD.

You can also download a simple rich text editable version of the HOOF form by clicking this link which may make life easier for those who cannot use the HOOF wizard.

You can also download a simple rich text editable version of the HOCF form (the consent form) by clicking this link.

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