CCL TIPS
By Deb Banker
Cerner Code Updates:
When moving from one Cerner code level to another, always remember to test CCL programs in a “Prod
like” test environment with the new code. The new code level may have new indexes or it may remove indexes
on major tables which can cause the Oracle Optimizer to process the code differently. The Optimizer could revert
to indexes that are less efficient. You can check the indexes in CCLQUERY after including the program. If the
Optimizer has switched to an index that is less efficient, you can add +0 to that indexed field to nullify it,
causing the Optimizer to use choose a different index. It’s important to test in a “Prod like”
test environment, because in a test environment without a lot of data, even the most inefficient program could
run fairly quickly, leading you to believe there are no issues until you move the program into Prod. Find and
fix those issues before moving to Prod.
Multi-node system and UAR functions:
After an Event Set and Event Code Load, code sets 72 and 93 can be refreshed by running CRMTEST on all nodes to
add the values into the global code cache. At my current client site we ran into an issue where code set 72 was
not refreshed completely on one node. Programs that use UAR functions to retrieve code values for code set 72
were unable to return values, which in turn caused incomplete report and genview output. (If a UAR function can
not find the code value in the cache, the function will not select from the code value table.) We later learned
that CRMTEST is not stable on multi-node systems. Cerner recommends a more recent method for refreshing the
Global Code Cache which removes then inserts the code values into the cache for a code set. This process should
be performed on every node after an event codes load.
Here is an example of how to refresh a code set:
code -remove -set 72
code -insert -set 72
Here is an example of how to view a code value in the cache:
code -search -value 60238761
Here is an example of how to view a code set in the cache:
code -search -set 72
IMPORTING FACESHEETS WITH LESS MESS IN HNAM
By Naser Sanjar
Most healthcare facilities have a separate patient registration system and a clinical information system.
However, in order to encourage clinicians to use the system, most facilities interface financial data into
Cerner. This process requires an extensive interface and core database build, including building every known
insurance company and health plan in Cerner and keeping the clinical system in synch with the financial
system.
An alternative Model using Custom Oracle table and GenView:
Custom Table: Ability to create custom table in Cerner allows developers to create oracle tables with
appropriate indexes to store any foreign data. Insurance information can be imported to Cerner and stored in
the custom table via a customized inbound interface that captures the data and calls a ccl program to insert the
data into the custom table or by directing inserting the data in the table using ODBC connection. At either
case, you can bypass Cerner’s Universal Interface code and store Insurance information from a foreign
system in Cerner at patient or visit level.
GenView: Cerner’s GenView is a customizable view into Cerner’s database. Any information stored in
the database can be retrieved, formatted, and displayed in PowerChart using GenView. Insurance information
(Facesheet) can be retrieved from a custom oracle table and displayed in PowerChart using GenView.
I have done this twice, once using the ODBC connection and inserting the data directly into Cerner and second
time with creating a custom inbound interface that worked as entry point for the data. In both cases, we
provided all the needed insurance information in PowerChart in real time without any Cerner core database build.
The process is completely transparent to the end users.
CUSTOMER CORNER: PALMETTO HEALTH
“Between the pre-work, onsite assessment and easy to understand reporting tool, the value resulting
from the VCS HNAM Tech Flash Assessment was un-surpassed” says Jeffrey Douglas from Palmetto Health, the
largest healthcare provider in South Carolina. As the Director for Strategic Systems and Operations, Jeff and
his team support over 6000 end users.
They were looking for an independent assessment of their Cerner system including the front and back-end, storage
and Citrix® systems in order to keep their Information Systems running as efficiently as possible.
Palmetto Health chose Vitalize Consulting Solutions, Inc (VCS) to perform the assessment precisely because they
were looking for an independent, unbiased opinion coupled with recommendations that the Palmetto team could
implement. “The concept behind the VCS Flash Assessment is to provide significant recommendations in order
to bring hospitals closer to a best practice model, at a price far below that of traditional assessments”
indicated John Smaling, VCS Principal. “By benchmarking against more than 100 best practices all at a
price under $15,000, we feel that we’ve accomplished that”.
Jeff adds, “The technical team was phenomenal. They brought incredible backgrounds to the table and
because of that, they assessed much broader and deeper than any other resource we previously used or
considered.” The VCS certified Senior Systems Consultants stay current on Cerner, Citrix®, IBM
WebSphere®, Oracle, Storage Optimization and more in order to provide positive outcomes for a predictable
price.
Learn more about the VCS HNAM TECH FLASH ASSESSMENT by clicking the link below or call Kim Tombragel at
405-752-0590.
http://www.getvitalized.com/marketing/techflashes/techflash1.htm