Medication Errors: Focus on Legibility
In healthcare systems, medication errors are among the leading causes of preventable errors, with a reported inpatient incidence of 5.7% (Kaushal, Bates, Landrigan, et al., 2001).
Ethics Toolbox – Medication Therapy Management: Challenge and Opportunity
As of January, under provisions in the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003, pharmacists are authorized to provide medication therapy management (MTM) services to Medicare patients.
Perspective: Teens, Technology, and Transforming Healthcare
Monday, November 29, 2005, was no ordinary day at Saint Petersburg Catholic High School. In fact, the day became extraordinary only 10 minutes into the first period.
Health Information Network – Just What the Doctor Ordered: Using an HIN to Improve Care
According to a report released in 2005 by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), less than one third of the nation’s hospital emergency and outpatient departments use electronic medical records.
Proceedings from the Quality Colloquium – Emerging IT Enablers: Physician Practice Connections
The premise of a value-based healthcare system is simple: Get people healthy and keep them that way. Unfortunately, ample documentation of the shortcomings in healthcare quality in this regard exists.
Evidence-Based Medicinez: The Evolution of Evidence-Based Medicine
Though more than 50 million people use the Internet to access health information (Fox & Rainie, 2000), lack of quality control and ease of posting allow Web-based healthcare to pose a potential for harm.
Editor’s Notebook: The Power of Language
For many, each morning at the 17th Annual National Forum of the Institute for Health Improvement (IHI) in December began with a few tears.
Decision Support and Clinical IT: Improving Safety in Obstetrics with Decision Support and Clinical IT
Ensuring consistency of care and patient safety can be especially challenging in obstetrics — a complex specialty with unpredictable patient loads and nursing shortages.
Consumers as Partners: Finally, Patient Safety Advocates Can Feel Good About Tort Reform
In 2005, Illinois became the first state to adopt an innovative disclosure program known as Sorry Works! Incorporated into a larger medical liability reform bill (Ill. Gen. Ass. Pub. Act 094-0677, 2005). Sorry Works! is a pilot project that supports provider organizations that agree to implement and study the impact of full disclosure of medical errors.
Care Management: Ensuring Successful Care Management
The healthcare industry is facing a multitude of challenges. An aging population, clinical staff shortages, ongoing medical advancements, increased consumer demand for information, and a growing number of people living with chronic diseases are causing healthcare stakeholders to re-evaluate the way they view healthcare.