CDEMS Basics...

Are you at a crossroads in managing chronic disease health care? These top 10 basic questions (and answers) about the CDEMS registry will help you to evaluate the program or get started as a new user.


1. What is CDEMS?
CDEMS is the Chronic Disease Electronic Management System, a software application developed by the Washington State Diabetes Prevention and Control Program in 2002. CDEMS is a Microsoft Access database application designed to assist medical providers and management in tracking the care of patients with chronic health conditions. CDEMS is pre-coded to track diabetes, asthma and adult preventive health but is customizable to change those tracking measures or define measures for monitoring other chronic conditions. Printed progress notes, patient lists, and summary reports generated from the registry database can alter the way services are delivered and measure quality improvement efforts. Click CDEMS Flyer.



2. What are the minimum system requirements?
  • PC computer with Microsoft Windows 98 or later operating system, Microsoft Windows, Windows 7, Vista, or NT
  • Or, Mac computer with a Windows interface
  • Microsoft Access (version 97 or higher), fully installed
  • Printer (color recommended) to print CDEMS progress notes and reports
  • Access to Internet for downloading program files and upgrades


3. How can I install CDEMS?
The CDEMS registry consists of three modules: data entry program, reports program, and data file. These program files are available without charge on the "Download Files" page at www.cdems.com. Detailed instructions there guide you through the process to download the CDEMS files that match your version of Access. The data file contains sample patient data for testing functionality and features of the program.



4. Can I review sample documents?
Yes, click CDEMS Sample Documents. to preview a sample progress note, graphs handout page, data collection form, sample summary report, and sample intervention list.



5. Can lab results be recorded electronically?
Yes! A lab interface program is available for electronically downloading lab results from several major labs (Labcorp, Dynacare, Quest, PAML). These lab interface programs are available on the "Download Files" page. For basic information about setting up the lab interface, click this shortcut to a Forum discussion on Lab Download Basics. A detailed Lab Interface Guide is also available in the Documentation section of the "Download Files" page.



6. What can be customized in CDEMS?
The tracking measures for any chronic health condition can be defined in CDEMS. This includes related diagnoses, meds, services and labs. Measures are created and customized in the user-friendly CDEMS SetUp Wizard. A customizable tickler system can be set up to remind providers of labs and services due dates and alert when test values are out of the target range. Service result pick lists and lab validation rules can be customized to ensure clean and consistent collection of data. Standards of care and descriptions can be customized on the patient graphs handout page. The "Create-A-Report" and "Create-A-List" templates in the reports program allow development of customized summary reports and intervention lists based on each clinic's unique setup parameters. Easy-to-use reporting tools empower non-technical users to create reports for a broad range of purposes.



7. How complicated is CDEMS to learn?
CDEMS can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be! User guides and training are available to help develop expertise quickly with the registry. The program files can be downloaded and your clinic set up in CDEMS within 30 minutes. The time for loading patients into the registry and ongoing data entry depends on your particular setup, goals, and the number of patients being tracked. Detailed setups for multiple health conditions, form customizations, custom queries and special reports all make the application more complex, but also meet the specific work flow and reporting needs of individual practices, large or small. CDEMS is designed to be a easy-to-use and customizable program with intelligent, flexible reporting based on the unique set of measures for any health condition.



8. What technical support is available?
A variety of services are available for self-support or one-on-one assistance with technical questions:
  • The "Download Files" CDEMS Documentation page contains detailed and up-to-date user guides.
  • Over 700 postings in the CDEMS Forum document technical questions and answers from users about the program. Visit the "Forum" page on the web site.
  • Group web training sessions are available bi-monthly for data entry and reports. Check the "Training" page for the current schedule and details about the content of each training class.
  • Monthly national support group teleconferences are held the 4th Wed of each month; look for meeting announcements and minutes of past meetings on the "Self-Support" page.
  • Free technical support is available to clinics/organizations enrolled in a current Washington State Collaborative. A toll-free number is available for assistance within WA: 1-800-478-3563.
  • Self-support and fee-for-service options are available to national users and WA users not participating in a current WA State Collaborative. Self-support resources can be found on the "Self-Support" page. Information about fee-based support options is available at www.support.cdems.com. Or, contact Jackie Gianunzio, CDEMS Support Specialist (e-mail: jackie@cdems.com or phone: 916-817-1401) directly for assistance.



9. Is CDEMS compatible with my Electronic Medical Record system?
Many EMR's are working on a way to manipulate data for population management/analysis. If there's a way to export data from your EMR, CDEMS can conceivably work with available data in a variety of formats: HL7, comma delimited, Excel, Access, txt files... Many organizations have developed data-sharing interfaces between their EMR and CDEMS, but an easy-to-use, standardized interface is not available. The number of EMR vendors and variable configuration issues are significant obstacles to building a one-size-fits-all interface. Still, the ability to export data is an important feature to consider in choosing an EMR. Data exchange with other systems can enable the use of CDEMS population-based reporting tools. Automating that exchange of information requires technical expertise to build an custom interface with cooperation from the system vendor to obtain data and map data elements. Many clinics continue to use CDEMS for tracking chronic conditions until the EMR is fully implemented and reporting capability tested. Others are resigned to continuing with dual systems until better, more affordable IT solutions are available.



10. Why should my clinic use CDEMS?
CDEMS is a low-cost, effective tool for implementing a consistent standard of care and documenting and measuring the outcomes of patients with chronic health conditions. The program is flexible and easily modified to meet the specific needs of an independent provider, a clinic system, provider group, community health center, or quality improvement initiative. Population-based reporting is the absolute strength of CDEMS and the true benefit of maintaining a registry. With easy-to-use report-building templates, data can be transformed by a non-technical user to useful information about care provided or identification of patients falling through the cracks. CDEMS can help target areas for health care improvement in your organization and monitor progress toward quality improvement goals. Registry data is valuable for quality certifications such as NCQA, reporting on complex national measures and pay-for-performance reimbursements. The registry has also become a valuable tool for validating the quality and quantity of data in EMR systems. CDEMS is often the first step in transitioning to electronic record management, requiring little capital investment and a low level of technical expertise to get started. Don't keep waiting for technology to get easier, cheaper, better -- you could download CDEMS and start your registry TODAY!