Unresolved lab requests and results
Manage unresolved requests from the Lab Requests and Results window. Examples: Orphans, not requested, lingering pending requests, no template results
Before you start
Security
- Lab Change Pending Requests
- Lab Not Requested Lab Work
- Lab Orphan Lab Work
- Lab Post Orphans
- Lab Requests and Results
Important!
- Until resolved, orphan and not requested results do not appear in patient history.
Orphan results
Orphan results occur when the results received for a patient do not match a pending request.
Navigate to Toolbar > Lab Requests and Results.
- Double-click the orphan row, or highlight the row and click Update, to open the Orphan Lab Work window.
- In the Lab Work Information area, use the patient and client information to locate the correct patient to assign these results.
- To find a patient, do any of these from the Patient ID field:
- Click the drop-down to select a recently accessed patient.
- Enter the patient ID and press the Tab key.
- Press F2 or double-click to search for and select from the Patient List.
- Determine the billing status by reviewing the patient Summary tab on the Patient Clipboard for billed items and then do one of the following:
- Leave Bill this client selected. If the item has not been billed, complete the Invoice Item ID field. The item will be sent to the Patient Visit List.
- Select Do not bill this client if the item has already been billed or if the instructions are to not bill.
- Click OK to save your changes.
Not requested results
Not requested results occur when more tests are run than were requested.
Navigate to Toolbar > Lab Requests and Results.
- Double-click on a Not Requested row or highlight the row and click Update to open the Not Requested Lab Work window.
- Determine billing status by reviewing the patient Summary tab on the Patient Clipboard for billed items, and then do one of the following: Tip: Right click the row to access the Patient Clipboard.
- Leave Bill this client selected. If the item has not been billed, complete the Invoice Item ID field.
- Select Do not bill this client if the item has already been billed or if the instructions are to not bill.
- Click OK to save your changes.
No template results
If the Cornerstone software receives laboratory results from an in-house laboratory, but the information does not fit into one of the existing templates (Example: Chemistry), the results are marked as No Template.
Contact Cornerstone Support to identify and correct the issue.
To prevent this problem, always keep your Cornerstone software updated to the most current version.
Rejected results
Laboratory results can be marked as Rejected if you find the results to be invalid.
Navigate to Toolbar > Lab requests and results.
- Double-click on a completed result, or highlight the row and click Update, to open the Detailed Lab Results window.
- From the Status drop-down list, select Rejected.
- If you then determine that the laboratory results should not be rejected, you can change the status from Rejected to Posted.
Notes:
- After the results are posted to a patient’s record, they cannot be rejected. You may choose to void the results, but they will remain in the patient’s history as a voided record.
- Rejected results are never included in the Cornerstone patient’s history. You can view rejected results in Cornerstone only if you select the Rejected Results check box on the Lab Requests and Results window. Rejecting a result in Cornerstone will not reject the result in VetConnect PLUS.
IDEXX VetLab Station Auto-Billing Log
To ensure that all charges are captured for tests performed on IDEXX in-house analyzers, the auto-billing feature will place charges on the Patient Visit List for all Not Requested results. You can view a log of the items that have been auto-billed. This feature can be turned off in defaults.
View auto-billed items
Navigate to Activities > Lab Work > VetLab Station Auto-Billing Log.
The VetLab Station Auto-Billing Log displays all automatically billed results and the invoice items for those results.
Turn off auto-billing
Navigate to Activities > Lab Work > Laboratory.
- Select the IDEXX in-clinic laboratory, and then click Update.
- Go to the Lab Information window and deselect the Use VetLab Station Auto-billing option.
- Click OK and then Close.
Additional information
Orphan results
- Orphan results occur when:
- A hand-written lab request form was used.
- Deleting a reference lab request before pickup, but submitting the sample and the form.
- Deleting a request after the laboratory receives the sample, without calling the lab.
- Data was entered incorrectly at the laboratory.
- Client or patient information was changed after placing the request.
- The lab request originated outside Cornerstone. Example: It was submitted through vetconnectplus.com or entered directly into the IDEXX VetLab* Station.
- A different test was run than what was ordered.
- Lab invoice items are linked to wrong profiles.
- To determining how an orphan occurred, you will need to evaluate each orphan result individually:
- Is there is a pending request for the patient?
- Does the client and patient information from the laboratory match the client and patient information on the pending request?
- Was a different test run in place of the requested test? To find this out, compare the list of profiles and tests on the pending request with the results received.
- Check the item setup and verify it is linked to the correct profile:
- Navigate to Lists > Invoice Item > search for the item > double click or click Update.
- On the special Action tab, verify the item is associated with the correct profile.
Not requested results
- Not requested results occur when:
- Additional tests were performed directly at the IDEXX VetLab Station, without updating the request in the Cornerstone software.
- Staff contacted the reference laboratory directly to add additional tests, without updating the request in the Cornerstone software.
- A different test was run instead of the requested test. Example: The item was not linked to the correct profile.
- The requested profile contained more tests or different tests than what were run.
- A reference lab request was updated before pickup. However, the original form, instead of the updated form, was included.
- To determining how a Not requested occurred, you will need to evaluate each orphan result individually.
- Compare the list of profiles and tests on the pending request with the results received.
- Identify which results were not part of the profile or test request.
Avoiding orphan and not requested results
- Make sure that proper workflows are being followed by the staff.
- Make sure items are linked to the correct profiles.
- Make sure any custom profiles are set up correctly. This applies to in-clinic lab only.
- Minimize the occurrence of Not Requested results by using the auto-billing feature, so a default charge is captured.
- If the same test(s) are continually creating Not Requested results, review the linked profile setup.
- Navigate to Lists > Invoice Item > search for the item > double click or click Update.
- On the special Action tab, verify the item is associated with the correct profile.
Related reports
These Cornerstone reports provide information from the actions outlined in this article. Each report has its own security access under the Reports tab of the Security Setup window.
- Lab Request Status Report
