USING PREGNANCY ORDER WARNINGS (User's Manual, pgs. 782-748)

1. Press View\Lab Book. Enter any patient name. Press Utility\Pregnancy Warnings.

2. The program comes a list of Test Name terms that are associated with risk to the fetus. You actually can use this list right out of the box if you wish. However, if you can think of a test term which involves risk that is not already on this list, type that term in to the right of the Add button and press Add to add it to this list.

3. Now, press the Scan button. This will automatically place a check mark in the Warn if childbearing-aged woman field for each test in your Lab Book Vocabulary that contains any of the words on this list. For example, since "ANGIOGRAM" appears on the list, any tests in your Lab Book Vocabulary (or their synonyms) containing this word, such as CAROTID ANGIOGRAM, CORONARY ANGIOGRAM, etc. will now have the Warn if childbearing-aged woman option checked. All of these tests will now trigger a warning for women of childbearing potential.

4. You can also check or uncheck the Warn if childbearing-aged woman item manually for any individual Lab Book Vocabulary test by pressing View\Lab Book\Utility\Vocabulary. Enter the name of the test, then check or uncheck Warn if childbearing-aged woman, and press Ok to store your changes. (This should rarely be necessary, but perhaps you later think of a test which wasn't checked and want to add it and make sure the option is checked).

Now, we will specify which women should trigger these warnings:

1. Press View\Orders\Options\Pregnancy Warning Options.

2. Again, you can use this feature right out of the box, but you may wish to tweak it.

3. Make sure you check Warn if ordering test involving radiation if woman possibly pregnant. Checking this activates the entire feature; if unchecked, the feature doesn't operate. (You might uncheck it if you aren't a physician and don't care to see these warnings ever).

4. You don't need to see the warning for children too young to be pregnant or women too old to be pregnant. You can adjust the Youngest age and Oldest age if you see pregnant patients younger or older than the default ranges.

5. If you record "Pregnancy" as a diagnosis in your Diagnosis Editor, then check Check Diagnosis List for Pregnancy. Any patient with an active diagnosis of Pregnancy in her Diagnosis Editor will be considered pregnant and be checked for orders of potentially hazardous tests.

6. Check Check Lab Book for recent pregnancy test so that you will be warned if the patient had a recent positive pregnancy test even if not yet recorded as "pregnant" in the Diagnosis Editor (and NOT warned if the pregnancy test was negative). You can use your own judgment as to how recent to consider "recent" by setting in the past <n> days to a number you feel is appropriate.

To see how it works, try testing it out:

1. Press View\Orders.

2. Enter the name of a Test that involves radiation, such as ANGIOGRAM.

3. Enter the name of a female Patient who should trigger the warning (between Youngest age and Oldest age, hasn't had a hysterectomy or recent negative Pregnancy Test, not an Exception) and press Ok.

4. You now see the warning that this patient is a woman of childbearing potential and that special precautions should be taken or a pregnancy test performed first.