Leaders in Health IT Patient Safety Discuss Negative Impacts of Bad Data Entry on EHR Systems at HIMSS15

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., April 9, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Fifteen years ago, technology was thought to be the answer to many problems associated with patient information and health records. However, the rapid adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) has brought unforeseen challenges and risks to patient safety, including less detectable hazards such as incorrect or missing data, relying on system default settings, and copying and pasting into the EHR.

"With any new technology, there are going to be new hazards—that's life," said Ronni Solomon, JD, executive vice president and general counsel, ECRI Institute. "Our goal is to be proactive about these hazards, understand them, and mitigate the risks associated with them so that health IT can reach its full potential."

Ronni Solomon and William Marella, executive director, operations and analytics, ECRI Institute, will be speaking about EHR-related hazards at the HIMSS15 Annual Conference on April 13, 2015, in an educational session titled "Would You Bet Your Mother's Life on Your EHR?"

During their hour-long session, Solomon and Marella will help attendees understand the long-lasting impacts of having bad data in their EHR systems and what can be done to protect their patients and offices from these hazards.

"We know that EHR-associated harm happens, and that one small event, one improper configuration, can have a wide-spread impact," Marella says. "ECRI Institute is currently taking a deeper look into the frequently identified causes and contributing factors to the unintended consequences that have been identified with the use of EHRs."

Taking a deeper look, however, means relying on the reporting of these adverse events that occur with EHRs. Many of these issues are shared internally, but have not yet been thought of as a safety hazard like falls and medication errors.

Solomon added, "I think that we have an amazing opportunity to start sharing this information so that we can implement these systems better, more efficiently, and provide safer patient care. If we don't share the bad news of today, we will miss out on the good lessons of tomorrow."

In 2014, ECRI Institute Patient Safety Organization convened the Partnership for Health IT Patient Safety, a private sector initiative that aims to develop an effective national framework for assuring patient safety in health IT through a collaborative multi-stakeholder effort. The partnership leverages the work of multiple PSOs, along with providers, vendors, an expert advisory panel, and collaborating organizations to create a learning environment that mitigates risk and facilitates improvement.

"Would You Bet Your Mother's Life on Your EHR" will be held Monday, April 13, at 1 p.m. in Room S401 of McCormack Place in Chicago. For more information about ECRI Institute's work in health IT patient safety or the Partnership, please contact [email protected], call (610) 825-6000, x5634, or write to ECRI Institute PSO at 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462. ECRI's European office can be contacted at [email protected]; ECRI's Malaysian office can be contacted at [email protected]; and ECRI's Middle Eastern office can be contacted at [email protected]. ECRI also offers free resources in our online eNewsletters.  

About ECRI Institute
ECRI Institute (www.ecri.org), a nonprofit organization, dedicates itself to bringing the discipline of applied scientific research to healthcare to discover which medical procedures, devices, drugs, and processes enable improved patient care. As pioneers in this science for nearly 50 years, ECRI Institute marries experience and independence with the objectivity of evidence-based research. Strict conflict-of-interest guidelines ensure objectivity. ECRI Institute is designated an Evidence-based Practice Center by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. ECRI Institute PSO is listed as a federally certified Patient Safety Organization by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Find ECRI Institute on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ECRIInstitute) and on Twitter (www.twitter.com/ECRI_Institute).

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110112/DC29081LOGO

SOURCE ECRI Institute

Related Links

http://www.ecri.org