To support more efficient workflows, reduce paper consumption, and promote digital integration, effective October 1, 2025, automatic printing of Connect Care laboratory requisitions for patient blood and urine specimen orders will be disabled. All other specimen requisitions will continue to automatically print.
Currently, lab requisitions for ambulatory clinic and post-discharge orders are automatically printed from Connect Care. However, these paper copies are often unnecessary in most situations, as lab orders are already visible to Alberta Precision Laboratories (APL) staff directly within Connect Care, and are visible to patients in the After Visit Summary (AVS) as well as the Connect Care patient portal (MyChart). Going forward, a printed copy of these lab requisitions will no longer be required in most clinical scenarios, and manual printing should only be used when required for patient care or specific collection scenarios.
Critical Prescriber Steps
- Please ensure that orders are signed so they are visible.
- Please ensure expected dates and instructions are included in order, if appropriate.
When Printing Is Still Required
There may be circumstances where a printed copy is necessary, such as when tests are ordered for third-party collection (e.g., out-of-province or private lab), or at a Continuing Care or Corrections site that uses external orders. In these cases, the workflow for how to print (or reprint) a requisition from the "Chart Review" activity is detailed in the below resource:
Also, if a paper requisition was previously required for an external send out to a specialty referral laboratory (e.g., Canadian Blood Services' requisition for perinatal testing), this paper requisition will still be required.
How to Support Your Patients
If a patient indicates they plan to have their collection done at a private lab or outside of Alberta, print the requisition from
Chart Review (ensuring "3rd Party Collect" is selected). Otherwise:
- Print the AVS: Provide the patient with a copy of the AVS and point out that it includes their lab orders, instructions, and other relevant details needed to book their lab appointment.
- Encourage MyChart use: Point out that there is a MyChart section called “Upcoming Tests and Procedures”, where patients can see all lab tests ordered by their provider (click the camera icon to see an example screenshot). Patients can also access the AVS via their MyChart.
If patients have not yet activated their MyChart account (as seen via the MyChart status icon in the patient chart Storyboard), encourage them to do so. For details on how to check a patient's MyChart account status and send a patient access instructions, see the tip sheet:
More Information
For any prescriber workflow-related issues, contact Help Desk at 1-877-31-4300 and submit a ticket. For more information, see the tip sheet/FAQ and bulletin.
