Clinicians Using Electronic Prescribing Override Most Medication Safety Alerts
Posted Feb 19 2009 5:45pm
Computer-based systems that allow clinicians to prescribe drugs electronically are designed to automatically warn of potential medication errors, but a new study reveals clinicians often override the alerts and rely instead on their own judgment.
The study, led by investigators at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), suggests that most clinicians find the current medication alerts more of an annoyance than a valuable tool. The authors conclude that if electronic prescribing is to effectively enhance patient safety, significant improvements are necessary. The study’s findings appear in the Feb. 9 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
“Electronic prescribing clearly will improve medication safety, but its full benefit will not be realized without the development and integration of high-quality decision support systems to help clinicians better manage medication safety alerts,” says the study’s senior author, Saul Weingart, MD, PhD, vice president for patient safety at Dana-Farber and an internist at BIDMC.
Computer-based systems that allow clinicians to prescribe drugs electronically are designed to automatically warn of potential medication errors, but a new study reveals clinicians often override the alerts and rely instead on their own judgment.
The study, led by investigators at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), suggests that most clinicians find the current medication alerts more of an annoyance than a valuable tool. The authors conclude that if electronic prescribing is to effectively enhance patient safety, significant improvements are necessary. The study’s findings appear in the Feb. 9 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
“Electronic prescribing clearly will improve medication safety, but its full benefit will not be realized without the development and integration of high-quality decision support systems to help clinicians better manage medication safety alerts,” says the study’s senior author, Saul Weingart, MD, PhD, vice president for patient safety at Dana-Farber and an internist at BIDMC.
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