Do OPOs need to develop an electronic donor form and buy laptops for everyone to replace the faxed written form? If so, will we be able to uplink data if we have it in an electronic donor form?
We are encouraging every OPO to have a data system whether it is developed in-house or purchased so that data can be entered at the patient’s bedside into your data system (via laptop) rather than handwriting it and entering it later. This can increase potential transcription errors. Most of the data collected in DonorNet® should link up consistently with what you are collecting. Use the data element spreadsheet that we posted as a guide. It gives you the field name, acceptable data ranges, units of measure, and more. In the current system, the most prevalent complaints we receive involve the amount of time to fax or receive a fax from the system, the lack of uniformity of the various donor forms, and the legibility of the fax copy.
