The Electronic Health Record: No Panacea for Risk
October 17, 2016
“By computerizing health records, we can avoid dangerous medical mistakes, reduce costs, and improve care.” — President George W. Bush, State of the Union Address, January 20, 2004 The move towards the electronic health record (EHR) has been under way for more than a decade now. Hospital administrators, healthcare insurers, IT vendors and government officials…Read More
Using Physician Engagement to Improve Hospital Profitability
October 10, 2016
It appeared to be a typical, run-of-the-mill board meeting at Hospital System “X.” Patient admissions had been slowly on the rise; healthcare teams seemed to be handling the increasing demand for services as the hospital facility continued to display an inviting appearance. Early in the meeting, the hospital CFO presented the data requested by board…Read More
The Promise of the Electronic Medical Record
August 30, 2016
A Promise Unfulfilled What exactly was the promise of the electronic medical record? The tool that was supposed to make life easier, workflow faster, quality of care better, and patients’ lives healthier has pretty much turned into a face-plant; a promise unfulfilled. Although there are some notable exceptions, the market has shifted to the large…Read More
Diagnostic Error: Chaos or Conquerable?
February 3, 2016
Given that proven effective solutions exist today, why haven’t more institutions implemented programs that have proven to reduce diagnostic errors? I listened with great interest to the interview conducted by Dr. Robert Wachter with Dr. Mark Graber in the January 2016 podcast of “Perspectives on Safety,” also published in the AHRQ PSNet. Dr. Graber makes…Read More
