A Staff-Directed Electronic Medical Record Alert to Increase Chlamydia Screening

Can an electronic medical record alert directed to medical assistants when preparing patients for their office visits increase screening for chlamydia among young women?In this randomized clinical trial of women aged 18 to 24 years with 7356 encounters in primary care and 10 672 in obstetrics-gynecology, an electronic medical record alert in primary care practices was associated with an increase in test orders compared with the control group. The alert did not affect testing in obstetrics-gynecology practices.This study’s findings suggest that an automatic alert in the electronic medical record directed to medical assistants increases chlamydia screening among young women in primary care settings.

Corresponding Author: Harold C. Wiesenfeld, MD, CM, Magee-Womens Research Institute, 300 Halket St, Ste 2333, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 (wieshc@upmc.edu).

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