Electronic medical and health records systems are gaining a wide-spread implementation in a variety of clinical settings, such as hospitals, private practises, and nursing homes. While such systems have their merits, it is crucial to use them accurately to avoid order entry mistakes that can harm the patients and impair provider’s clinical judgment. Certain safety features, such as barcode medication administration and interface improvement, have been proposed to address potential limitations of electronic health systems.
Inappropriate usage of health information technology often creates room for malpractice. Staggers et al. (2008) listed medication prescription errors, lower quality of care, and efficiency drop as potential consequences. For instance, errors in medication prescription can result in adverse drug events if they are not intercepted (Staggers et al., 2008). Moreover, adverse events such as energy blackouts can halt the administration of medication in the long-term care facility setting (Kruse et al., 2017). Yu et al. (2013) also identified complexity of information management, data entry and retrieval as unintended adverse consequences which impair nurses’ ability to provide quality care. Essentially, virtually all of malpractice instances stem from incorrect usage or understanding of such systems.
Barcode medication administration (BCMA) is a safety feature associated with improving the efficiency of medication administration. A BCMA system can decrease medication error rate and discrepancies in documentation in patient’s EHR (Staggers et al., 2008). Nonetheless, BCMA technology has its limitation as it impairs nurses’ workflow (Staggers et al., 2008). A better understanding of nursing staff’s work and interface improvements can help reduce error and dissatisfaction rates (Yu et al., 2013). In general, despite their advantages, electronic health systems management still has room for improvement.
Overall, electronic information technology, such as EMR and EHR, offer considerable benefits in providing care in long-term care facilities. Nonetheless, they may have certain disadvantages if not used correctly. Therefore, it is crucial to continuously improve their usability and educate staff about appropriate management.
References
Kruse, C. S., Mileski, M., Vijaykumar, A. G., Viswanathan, S. V., Suskandla, U., & Chidambaram, Y. (2017). Impact of electronic health records on long-term care facilities: Systematic review. JMIR Medical Informatics, 5(3). Web.
Staggers N., Weir C., & Phansalkar S. (2008). Patient safety and health information technology: Role of the electronic health record. In Hughes R.G. (Ed.)., Patient safety and quality: An evidence-based handbook for nurses. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Web.
Yu, P., Zhang, Y., Gong, Y., & Zhang, J. (2013). Unintended adverse consequences of introducing electronic health records in residential aged care homes. International Journal of Medical Informatics, 82(9), pp. 772–788. Web.