Speaker: Video takes documentation to the next level

LAS VEGAS — The opportunities provided by video can help prosthetists improve their documentation and analysis of patients, according to a speaker at the American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association National Assembly, here.

Cara Negri

Video is a great platform for a diary or log of how patients are doing, and doubles as a form of documentation, Cara Negri, BSME, CP, director of PnO Data Solutions, said. Negri said she used video footage to work with a patient who was considering a microprocessor knee. Using video to compare the patient’s ability to walk with and without the microprocessor knee, Negri was able to show him evidence that made the decision to purchase the knee.

“I had a story and it was right there, plain to see, before and after, that he was obviously doing much better with the microprocessor knee,” she said.

 Negri said recording outcome measures through video is a great way to track a patient’s progress.

“You can go back to that video 5 years later and remember that visit and say, ‘Look, this is how that patient was doing on that day,’” she said.

Negri noted that video is a great analytical tool because it can be slowed down or reviewed more than once. She said pulling up a video makes it easy to complete chart notes after a visit or to consult with a colleague on treatment.

A number of options are available for video analysis and editing, including desktop software and apps for smart phone or tablets. Negri said that while some prosthetists have been resistant to implementing this technology, the opportunities provided by video make it worth the effort.

“You can reduce your fitting times, return visits, improve outcomes, function and comfort and then have a solid foundation for your clinical decisions,” she said. — by Amanda Alexander

For more information:

Negri C. Using video for observational analysis in practice. Presented at: American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association National Assembly; Sept. 4-7, 2014; Las Vegas.

Disclosure: Negri’s company, PnO Data Solutions, provides video editing software.

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