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Playbook 5 min· intermediate
Escalating a clinical signature failure
Confirm scope, capture screenshot policy, escalate by severity.
When to use
A clinician reports their order or note signature is failing.
Steps
- 1Confirm scope
Same workstation only, or unit-wide? Ask the clinician to try a different machine if safe.
- 2Check policy
Confirm screenshot policy. If allowed, capture the error with no patient info visible.
- 3Workaround first
If a verbal-order workaround exists for this org, offer it before escalating.
- 4Escalate by severity
Patient-impact: page on-call immediately. No impact: ticket with screenshot.
What to say
- 'Let's try one order on another workstation while I watch.'
- 'No screenshots that show patient info.'
- 'I'll page on-call if any order is time-sensitive.'
What to capture
- Number of clinicians affected
- Time first failure was reported
- Workaround used (if any)
Common mistakes
- • Screenshotting PHI.
- • Skipping the workaround.
- • Vague severity wording.
When to escalate
Page on-call clinical informatics if any pending order touches a time-sensitive workflow.