onboarding

Welcome to your VA rotation! Review the following before your first rotation as well as the first time you log into CPRS to ensure that you have the correct access. We are excited to have you join us!

HPT Provision

Please ensure that you have completed your required forms and TMS training in the email sent to you before starting. Please reach out to Tammy Cheu or one of the chiefs for issues regarding onboarding.

Fingerprinting

You need to get fingerprinted and have your photo taken before rotating at the VA for access to the computer and EMR. To be fingerprinted and photographed you can either:

A. Walk in - at the DC VA Medical Center (50 Irving St NW) on Fridays from 7am-11:45am. Please let us know if you are planning on walking in so that we can ensure the badging office has all of the forms.

B. Schedule an appointment - this can be done at either the DC VA Medical Center (50 Irving St NW) or the Central VA Office (425 I St NW). This can be scheduled at va-piv.com.

Please note that for either option, you need to bring two forms of ID and at least one with a photo. The types of acceptable IDs are listed to the right.

how to get a piv

Once you are fingerprinted, you will need to have your photo taken. It takes approximately 48 hours for your fingerprints to clear. Once these two steps are completed, you will be able to get a PIV. To get your PIV you can either:

A. Walk in - at the DC VA Medical Center (50 Irving St NW) on M-F during normal business hours. You must let us know if you are planning on walking in ONE WEEK in advance so we can make arrangements.

B. Schedule an appointment - this can be done at the DC VA Medical Center (50 Irving St NW) ONLY. This can be scheduled at va-piv.com.

Please note that for either option, you need to bring two forms of ID and at least one with a photo. The types of acceptable IDs are listed to the right. You will likely not be able to pick up the ID at the photo appointment but will have to return at a later time to retrieve it once it has been printed.

**NOTE: You may not be able to log in on your first attempt after you get your PIV card. The first login attempt triggers the system to pair your VA creditials with your PIV card. This process can take up to 3 hours**

Accepted forms of ID

State-issued drivers license

State DMV-issued ID card

U.S. passport

Military ID card

U.S. Coast Guard Merchant marine card

Foreign passport with appropriate stamps (i.e. active visa)

Permanent resident card or alien registration card with photograph (INS form I-151/I-551)

ID card issued by federal or state government

Social security card

Certified birth certificate

State voter registration card

Native American Tribal document

Certificate of US Citizenship

Certificate of Naturalization

Certificate of birth abroad issued by the Department of State

Permanent or Temporary resident card

ID card issued by local government with name, DOB, gender, height, eye color, and address

Non-photo ID card by federal and state gov't with above information

School ID with photograph

Canadian drivers license

US citizen ID card (Form I-179)

how to get a piv exemption

If you don't have a PIV you can still start your rotation, but you will need a PIV exemption to login to the computer. On your first day, to get a PIV exemption you call IT Local number x58129. They will walk you through on setting up an ID.me account in order to request a PIV exemption.

logging into cprs

Before your first day, you should receive login codes from the chiefs. Your CPRS login codes are called VistA/CPRS and include a temporary password which you change when your first login.

making an e-signature

You must make an e-signature to be able to sign any orders on CPRS. This is done by choosing Tools >> Utilities >> Create e-signature.

Adding Notes to favorites

This will help you to easily start new notes, so that you don't have to search every time you start a note.

Under the “Tools” Menu, click “Options,” then the “Notes” tab. Click the “Document Titles” button. We recommend the following frequently used note types:

Admission History and Physical
Med: Inpatient Progress Note
Med: Inpatient Cross Cover Note
Discharge Progress Note (Part 1/4) (can be used on the patient’s last day if being discharged in the morning)
Med: Fall Medical Assessment and Intervention Note
Universal Protocol Note – Physician
Universal Protocol Note – Time Out
Central Line Insertion Note
Discharge Instructions Part B
Discharge Medication Reconciliation
Code Blue: Medicine Note
Rapid Response Team (RRT) Physician Note

CPRS basics

CPRS is the EMR that is used by all the VA nationwide. It was first created in the 1980s and so has a few quirks that you will quickly learn and adapt to. It has all of the functionality of the EMRs at your home institutions as well as the ability to do much more. During your in-person orientation, you will get a primer on CPRS and important tools to use every day, but in the meantime you can refer to these YouTube videos for a preview.

Remote Access to CPRS - Click Here for Directions

Parking

There are a few ways to park at the VA:

Employee Parking Garage - requires a PIV for entrance. On Mondays, bring a copy of your drivers license, registration, insurance, and this vehicle registration form to the VA police office in the basement (GE-270). They will activate your badge to enter the garage.
Parking lot near Building 6 - this often fills up very quickly, you show your ID to the police officer at the front entrance and drive past the patient parking to the back of the hospital
Soldier's Home - see the following map on how to get to the Soldier's Home. A shuttle runs every 10-15 minutes between the Soldier's Home and the VA Medical Center

Clearing CPRS Notifications

At the end of your rotation please clear any notifications that you have. You can find your notifications when you log into CPRS

You can clear the notifications by:

1. clicking on Process All and clicking though the notifications (easiest if you do it once at the end of each day)

2. Clicking on any patient that you are staking care of then clicking Tools>>Notifications>>Remove Pending Notifications

- Note if you do this, please make sure you do not have any unsigned notes as it will sign them/delete them preemptively.

Registering your mobile Device with IT

All residents now have to register their cell phones with IT. This is how IT verifies your identity when you call them with an IT issue.

- Please see this PDF on how to register your device