Office Procedures for Communicating Growth and Puberty Care Plan Information

To ensure the patient, family and all team members have a current copy of the care plan and receive timely health status changes, the pediatrician and endocrinologist’s offices should establish clear office procedures for sharing or obtaining the care plan. The endocrinologist is responsible for sharing the care plan and any care plan updates; the pediatrician is responsible for obtaining the care plan and providing health status changes.

The following are some items to consider when creating an office procedure to communicate growth and puberty plan information:

• Define who in your office is responsible for communicating or obtaining the patient’s care plan and important health status changes.
  
  
• Define whom should be included in the communication:
  ✓ The patient and family
  ✓ The pediatrician in the medical home
  ✓ The referring provider if different than the pediatrician
  ✓ Subspecialist(s)
  ✓Subspecialist(s)
  ✓ Other essential care team members
  
  
• Define what should be included in the communication. Items may include:
  ✓ Specific questions
  ✓ History of the condition
  ✓ Relevant physical exam findings
  ✓ Growth charts
  ✓ Diagnostic test results (or no testing) ✓Diagnosis and education about the condition (from endocrinologist)
  ✓ Treatment plan with explanation of benefits and risks ✓Medications ✓Assessment of psychosocial concerns
  ✓Your contact information
  
  
• Determine the form of the communication. Options include:
  ✓ Fax the care plan to the primary care office.
  ✓ Provide a summary letter with an invitation to the primary care office to request additional records or a full copy of the records.
  ✓ Submit electronically to practices sharing the same EMR system.
  ✓ Create a system to document that mail or secure electronic communication has occurred among team members.
  
  
• Establish the frequency of communication for updates to the plan or health status changes, eg, after every visit or when clinical changes occur.
  
  
• Encourage the patient and family to keep an up-to-date copy of the care plan and to communicate changes in health status and care regimen to all members of the care team.