An analysis of electronic health record-related patient safety incidents

Educational interventions and their effects on healthcare professionals' digital competence development: A systematic review

INTRODUCTION

The digitalisation of healthcare requires that healthcare professionals are equipped with adequate digital competencies to be able to deliver high-quality healthcare. Continuing professional education is needed to ensure these competencies.

OBJECTIVE

This systematic review aimed to identify and describe the educational interventions that have been developed to improve various aspects of the digital competence of healthcare professionals and the effects of these interventions.

METHODS

A systematic literature review following the Joanna Briggs Institute's guidelines for Evidence Synthesis was conducted. Five electronic databases (CINAHL, PubMed, ProQuest, Scopus and Medic) up to November 2023 were searched for studies. Two researchers independently assessed the eligibility of the studies by title, abstract and full text and the methodological quality of the studies. Data tabulation and narrative synthesis analysis of study findings were performed. The PRISMA checklist guided the review process.

RESULTS

This review included 20 studies reporting heterogeneous educational interventions to develop the digital competence of healthcare professionals. The participants were mainly nurses and interventions were conducted in various healthcare settings. The length of the education varied from a 20-minute session to a six-month period. Education was offered through traditional contact teaching, using a blended-learning approach and through videoconference. Learning was enhanced through lectures, slide presentations, group work, case studies, discussions and practical exercises or simulations. Educational interventions achieved statistically significant results regarding participants' knowledge, skills, attitudes, perception of resources, self-efficacy or confidence and output quality.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of this review suggest that digital competence education of nurses and allied health professionals would benefit from a multi-method approach. Training should provide knowledge as well as opportunities to interact with peers and instructors. Skills and confidence should be enhanced through practical training. Adequate organisational support, encouragement, and individual, needs-based guidance should be provided.

An Analysis of Incident Reports Related to Electronic Medication Management: How They Change Over Time

OBJECTIVE

Electronic medication management (EMM) systems have been shown to introduce new patient safety risks that were not possible, or unlikely to occur, with the use of paper charts. Our aim was to examine the factors that contribute to EMM-related incidents and how these incidents change over time with ongoing EMM use.

METHODS

Incidents reported at 3 hospitals between January 1, 2010, and December 31, 2019, were extracted using a keyword search and then screened to identify EMM-related reports. Data contained in EMM-related incident reports were then classified as unsafe acts made by users and the latent conditions contributing to each incident.

RESULTS

In our sample, 444 incident reports were determined to be EMM related. Commission errors were the most frequent unsafe act reported by users (n = 298), whereas workarounds were reported in only 13 reports. User latent conditions (n = 207) were described in the highest number of incident reports, followed by conditions related to the organization (n = 200) and EMM design (n = 184). Over time, user unfamiliarity with the system remained a key contributor to reported incidents. Although fewer articles to electronic transfer errors were reported over time, incident reports related to the transfer of information between different computerized systems increased as hospitals adopted more clinical information systems.

CONCLUSIONS

Electronic medication management-related incidents continue to occur years after EMM implementation and are driven by design, user, and organizational conditions. Although factors contribute to reported incidents in varying degrees over time, some factors are persistent and highlight the importance of continuously improving the EMM system and its use.

Inpatient nurses' preferences and decisions with risk information visualization

OBJECTIVE

We examined the influence of 4 different risk information formats on inpatient nurses' preferences and decisions with an acute clinical deterioration decision-support system.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We conducted a comparative usability evaluation in which participants provided responses to multiple user interface options in a simulated setting. We collected qualitative data using think aloud methods. We collected quantitative data by asking participants which action they would perform after each time point in 3 different patient scenarios.

RESULTS

More participants (n = 6) preferred the probability format over relative risk ratios (n = 2), absolute differences (n = 2), and number of persons out of 100 (n = 0). Participants liked average lines, having a trend graph to supplement the risk estimate, and consistent colors between trend graphs and possible actions. Participants did not like too much text information or the presence of confidence intervals. From a decision-making perspective, use of the probability format was associated with greater concordance in actions taken by participants compared to the other 3 risk information formats.

DISCUSSION

By focusing on nurses' preferences and decisions with several risk information display formats and collecting both qualitative and quantitative data, we have provided meaningful insights for the design of clinical decision-support systems containing complex quantitative information.

CONCLUSION

This study adds to our knowledge of presenting risk information to nurses within clinical decision-support systems. We encourage those developing risk-based systems for inpatient nurses to consider expressing risk in a probability format and include a graph (with average line) to display the patient's recent trends.

Characterization of Safety Events Involving Technology in Primary and Community Care

BACKGROUND

The adoption of technology in health care settings is often touted as an opportunity to improve patient safety. While some adverse events can be reduced by health information technologies, technology has also been implicated in or attributed to safety events. To date, most studies on this topic have focused on acute care settings.

OBJECTIVES

To describe voluntarily reported safety events that involved health information technology in community and primary care settings in a large Canadian health care organization.

METHODS

Two years of safety events involving health information technology (2016-2018) were extracted from an online voluntary safety event reporting system. Events from primary and community care settings were categorized according to clinical setting, type of event, and level of harm. The Sittig and Singh sociotechnical system model was then used to identify the most prominent sociotechnical dimensions of each event.

RESULTS

Of 104 reported events, most (n = 85, 82%) indicated the event resulted in no harm. Public health had the highest number of reports (n = 45, 43%), whereas home health had the fewest (n = 7, 7%). Of the 182 sociotechnical concepts identified, many events (n = 61, 59%) mapped to more than one dimension. Personnel (n = 48, 46%), Workflow and Communication (n = 37, 36%), and Content (n = 30, 29%) were the most common. Personnel and Content together was the most common combination of dimensions.

CONCLUSION

Most reported events featured both technical and social dimensions, suggesting that the nature of these events is multifaceted. Leveraging existing safety event reporting systems to screen for safety events involving health information technology, and applying a sociotechnical analytic framework can aid health organizations in identifying, responding to, and learning from reported events.

Development and Validation of SafeHIT: An Instrument to Assess the Self-Reported Safe Use of Health Information Technology

BACKGROUND

Implementing health information technology (HIT) may cause unintended consequences and safety risks when incorrectly designed and used. Yet, the tools to assess self-reported safe use of HIT are not well established.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to develop and validate SafeHIT, an instrument to assess self-reported safe use of HIT among health care practitioners.

METHODS

Systematic literature review and a semistructured interview with 31 experts were adopted to generate SafeHIT instrument items. In total, 450 physicians from various departments at three Malaysian public hospitals participated in the questionnaire survey to validate SafeHIT. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were undertaken to explore the items that best represent a specific construct and to confirm the reliability and validity of the SafeHIT, respectively.

RESULTS

The final SafeHIT consisted of 14 constructs and 58 items in total. The result of the CFA confirmed that all constructs demonstrated adequate convergent and discriminant validity.

CONCLUSION

A reliable and valid theoretically underpinned measure of determinants of safe HIT use behavior has been developed. Understanding external factors that influence safe HIT use is useful for developing targeted interventions that favor the quality and safety of health care.

Virtual visits at the Helsinki Head and Neck Center during the COVID-19 pandemic: patient safety incidents and the experiences of patients and staff

BACKGROUND

During the COVID-19 pandemic, health care had to find new ways to care for patients while reducing infection transmission. The role of telemedicine role has grown exponentially.

METHODS

A questionnaire on experiences and satisfaction was sent to the staff of the Head and Neck Center of Helsinki University Hospital and to otorhinolaryngology patients treated remotely between March and June 2020. Additionally, patient safety incident reports were examined for incidents involving virtual visits.

RESULTS

Staff (response rate 30.6%, (n = 116)) opinions seemed to be quite polarized. In general, staff felt virtual visits were useful for select groups of patients and certain situations, and beneficial in addition to face-to-face visits, not instead of them. Patients (response rate 11.7%, (n = 77)) gave positive feedback on virtual visits, with savings in time (average 89 min), distance travelled (average 31.4 km) and travel expenses (average 13.84€).

CONCLUSIONS

While telemedicine was implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure patient treatment, its usefulness after the pandemic must be examined. Evaluation of treatment pathways is critical to ensure that quality of care is upheld while new treatment protocols are introduced. Telemedicine offers the opportunity to save environmental, temporal, and monetary resources. Nonetheless, the appropriate use of telemedicine is essential, and clinicians must be offered the option to examine and treat patients face-to-face.

Planned improvement actions based on patient safety incident reports in Estonian hospitals: a document analysis

AIM

Aim of this study was to describe and analyse associations of incidents and their improvement actions in hospital setting.

METHODS

It was a retrospective document analysis of incident reporting systems' reports registered during 2018-2019 in two Estonian regional hospitals. Data were extracted, organised, quantified and analysed by statistical methods.

RESULTS

In total, 1973 incident reports were analysed. The most commonly reported incidents were related to patient violent or self-harming behaviour (n=587), followed by patient accidents (n=379), and 40% of all incidents were non-harm incidents (n=782). Improvement actions were documented in 83% (n=1643) of all the reports and they were focused on (1) direct patient care, (2) staff-related actions; (3) equipment and general protocols and (4) environment and organisational issues. Improvement actions were mostly associated with medication and transfusion treatment and targeted to staff. The second often associated improvement actions were related to patient accidents and were mostly focused on that particular patient's further care. Improvement actions were mostly planned for incidents with moderate and mild harm, and for incidents involving children and adolescents.

CONCLUSION

Patient safety incidents-related improvement actions need to be considered as a strategy for long-term development in patient safety in organisations. It is vital for patient safety that the planned changes related to the reporting will be documented and implemented more visibly. As a result, it will boost the confidence in managers' work and strengthens all staff's commitment to patient safety initiatives in an organisation.

Interorganizational health information exchange-related patient safety incidents: A descriptive register-based qualitative study

PURPOSE

The current literature related to patient safety of interorganizational health information is fragmented. This study aims to identify interorganizational health information exchange-related patient safety incidents occurring in the emergency department, emergency medical services, and home care. The research also aimed to describe the causes and consequences of these incidents.

METHODS

A total of sixty (n = 60) interorganizational health information exchange-related patient safety incident free text reports were analyzed. The reports were reported in the emergency department, emergency medical services, or home care between January 2016 and December 2019 in one hospital district in Finland.

RESULTS

The identified interorganizational health information exchange-related incidents were grouped under two main categories: "Inadequate documentation"; and "Inadequate use of information". The causes of these incidents were grouped under the two main categories "Factors related to the healthcare professional " and "Organizational factors", while the consequences of these incidents fell under the two main categories "Adverse events" and "Additional actions to prevent, avoid, and correct adverse events".

CONCLUSION

This study shows that the inadequate documentation and use of information is mainly caused by factors related to the healthcare professional and organization, including technical problems. These incidents cause adverse events and additional actions to prevent, avoid, and correct the events. The sociotechnical perspective, including factors related to health care professionals, organization, and technology, should be emphasized in patient safety development of inter-organizational health information exchange and it will be the focus of our future research. Continuous research and development work is needed because the processes and information systems used in health care are constantly evolving.

Health technology, quality and safety in a learning health system

Health technology quality and safety is an important issue for health informatics (i.e. digital health) professionals. Health technologies have been used to (1) collect data that can be analyzed to improve the quality and safety of healthcare activities and (2) re-engineer and/or automate error-prone processes. Health technologies are also able to introduce new types of errors (i.e. technology-induced errors) and have been implicated in propagating errors across digital health ecosystems. To develop a learning health system, health technologies need to be considered in terms of how they can improve the quality and safety of health activities traditionally carried out by humans (patients and health professionals) and also how the technology's quality and safety can be improved. This article outlines how this can be done by integrating evidence from health informatics research into practice using a learning health systems approach.

Acceptance of information communication technology-based health information services: Exploring the culture in primary-level health care of South Ethiopia, using Utaut Model, Ethnographic Study

Introduction

In sub-Saharan African countries including Ethiopia, the acceptance of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in health is at the proof-of-concept level with a few unsustainable piecemeal of pilot projects. Thus, a desirable willingness of acceptance among healthcare providers is a paramount.

Material and Methods

Eight months elapsed ethnographic study design was conducted using participant observation and key informant interviews. The data were entered on Qualitative Data Analysis mine software version 1.4. The quotes and field notes were thematized. The Unified Technology Acceptance and Use Theory (UTAUT) is validated and used to generate new meanings.

Results

This study highlighted the different instances of technology acceptance. Although the primary-level healthcare (PLHC) providers displayed tendencies to accept ICTs-based health information services consistent with the UTAUT dimensions such as the degree of simplicity associated with performance expectancy, use/effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, social issue, individual variation, and organization culture there are instances that disputed acceptance. For instance, the gains in data quality and reporting secondary to the use of District Health Information System Two (DHIS-II) are not influenced by acceptance. Rather PLHC providers are burnt-out of additional clerical duties of filling data on the DHIS-2. Furthermore, ICT acceptance is influenced by individual variations and the unique culture of primary level facilities such as leadership commitment.

Conclusions

On this basis, we conclude that the willingness to accept ICT-based health information services at the primary level is not limited to those factors discussed in the UTAUT model.

The effect of an integrated electronic medical record system on malaria out-patient case management in a Ugandan health facility

Background

Malaria contributes 20% of outpatient cases in health facilities in Uganda. Data also show that there is a severe shortage of skilled health care personnel in sub-Saharan Africa. Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems have been shown to provide benefits to health care providers and patients alike, making them important for low resourced settings.

Methods

A comparative study was performed from March 2018 to March 2019 in which an integrated EMR system was implemented with treatment guidelines for malaria, and its effect was evaluated on malaria outpatient case management in one Ugandan health facility. Another health facility was used as a control site.

Results

Malaria outpatient visits were 1.3 h shorter in the EMR group ( p < .0001), and 80% more participants in the EMR group had age and weight information available to clinicians at the point of prescribing ( p < .0001). Fewer participants in the EMR group had recurring malaria with no statistical significance ( p = .097). Malaria surveillance reporting was significantly more accurate at the EMR intervention site ( p < .05).

Conclusion

The EMR system probably improved malaria outpatient case management by reducing outpatient visit durations, improving the availability of patient age and weight information to inform prescribing and improving the accuracy of malaria surveillance reporting.

Characterizing healthcare incidents in Sweden related to health information technology affecting care management of multiple patients

This study aimed to examine health information technology-related incidents and identify risks associated with multiple patients' management. Sources of information comprised interviews with healthcare professionals and three small sets of local voluntary incident reports using two sampling strategies, purposive and snowball sampling. Incident reports, in the form of free-text narratives, were aggregated for analysis using the Health Information Technology Classification System and thematic analysis. Of 95 incidents, 176 issues were identified, comprising 77% (n = 136) technical issues, and 23% (n = 40) use or human-related issues. Human issues were over two times more likely to harm patients (OR 2.25, 95% CI 1.01 - 4.98) than technical issues. Incidents that affected multiple patients' care accounted for 70% (n = 66) of the total sample, and large-scale events comprised 39% (n = 26) of the incidents that affected multiple patients' care. Systematically identifying and characterizing such incidents should be prioritized for health information technology implementations.

Registered Nurses' and Medical Doctors' Experiences of Patient Safety in Health Information Exchange During Interorganizational Care Transitions: A Qualitative Review

OBJECTIVE

This systematic review aimed to identify, critically appraise, and synthesize the best available literature on registered nurses' and medical doctors' experiences of patient safety in health information exchange (HIE) during interorganizational care transitions.

METHODS

The review was conducted according to the JBI methodology for systematic reviews of qualitative evidence. A total of 5 multidisciplinary databases were searched from January 2010 to September 2020 to identify qualitative or mixed methods studies. The qualitative findings were pooled using JBI SUMARI with the meta-aggregation approach.

RESULTS

The final review included 6 original studies. The 53 distinct findings were aggregated into 9 categories, which were further merged into 3 synthesized findings: (1) HIE efficiency and accuracy support patient safety during interorganizational care transitions; (2) inaccuracies in content and structure, along with poor HIE usability, jeopardize patient safety during interorganizational care transitions; and (3) health care professionals' (HCP) actions in HIE are associated with patient safety during interorganizational care transitions.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this review identified several advantages of HIE, namely, improvements in patient safety based on reduced human error. Nevertheless, a lack of usability and functionality can amplify the effects of human error and increase the risk of adverse events. In addition, HCPs' individual actions in HIE were found to influence patient safety. Hence, the cognitive and sociotechnical perspectives of work related to HIE should be studied. In addition, HCPs' experiences of each stage of HIE deployment should be clarified to ensure a high standard of patient safety. Registration: PROSPERO CRD42020220631, registered on November 13, 2020.

Voluntary patient safety incidents reporting in forensic psychiatry-What do the reports tell us?

WHAT IS KNOWN ON THE SUBJECT?: Patient safety incident reporting has been recognized as a key process for organizational learning and safety culture; however, there is limited knowledge about patient safety in forensic psychiatric care. There are distinct patient safety issues in psychiatric nursing, associated (inter alia) with the self-harm, violence, seclusion/restrain and restrictions. Many adverse events are preventable. WHAT DOES THIS PAPER ADD TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: No harm was caused to patients in less than half (51%) of all reported incidents (in a Finnish forensic psychiatric hospital during a six-year period) considered in this study. The most common location of violent incidents was corridors (31%), followed by day rooms (20%), and patient rooms (15%). The most common patient safety incidence type was violence against another patient (38%), which typically occurred in corridors (36%), dayrooms (25%) and patient rooms (15%), and was usually related to daily activities in the afternoon (1,400-1,600 hr) and evening (1,800-2,000 hr). Typically, recommendations for improving patient safety focus on human behaviours. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE?: There is a need to notify and report all patient safety incidents (following staff training), learn from previous incidents (also learn for success), prevent typical incidents, learn for success, promote patient participation in incident prevention, share development measures outside the ward to enable exploitation by others and strengthen safety culture. In forensic psychiatry, conversation with patients regarding safety measures is strongly recommended to prevent patient safety incidents related to violence. The perspective should be extended from patient-specific factors to general factors such as patient treatment and general comfort and privacy.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Patient safety incident reporting has been recognized as a key process for organizational learning and safety culture, but there is limited knowledge about patient safety in forensic psychiatric care.

AIMS

To characterize the types and frequencies of incidents in forensic psychiatric care and assess the implications for practice.

METHODS

Data were collected from a patient safety incident reporting system (PSiRS) database of one forensic psychiatry hospital in Finland and analysed using descriptive statistics.

RESULTS

No harm was caused in more than half of the 2,521 reported incidents examined (51%, n = 1,260). The most frequently recorded incident type was violence (38%), which typically occurred in corridors (31%) or dayrooms (20%). The most frequently recommended action to prevent violent events was that potential risks should be discussed (77%).

DISCUSSION

Patient safety incidents related to violence are common in forensic psychiatric hospitals. Although very few adverse events were classified as causing serious harm to patients, many cases of violence could be prevented by identifying potential circumstances that lead to violence.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Staff need encouragement and training to detect and report all patient safety incidents. Safety culture is strengthened by learning and sharing development measures to improve patient safety.

Combining Failure Modes and Effects Analysis and Cause-Effect Analysis: A Novel Method of Risk Analysis to Reduce Anaphylaxis Due to Contrast Media

BACKGROUND

Contrast media agents are essential for computed tomography-based diagnoses. However, they can cause fatal adverse effects such as anaphylaxis in patients. Although it is rare, the chances of anaphylaxis increase with the number of examinations. Thus, we aimed to design a quality-improvement initiative to reduce patient risk to these agents.

METHODS

We analysed computed tomography processes using contrast iodine in a tertiary-care academic hospital that performs approximately 14,000 computed tomography scans per year in Japan. We applied a combination of failure modes and effects analysis and cause-effect analysis to reduce the risk of patients developing allergic reactions to iodine-based contrast agents during computed tomography imaging.

RESULTS

Our multidisciplinary team comprising seven professionals analysed the data and designed a 56-process flowchart of computed tomography imaging with iodine. We obtained 177 failure modes, of which 15 had a risk-probability number higher than 100. We identified the two riskiest processes and developed cause-and-effect diagrams for both: one was related to exchange of information between the radiation and hospital information system regarding the patient's allergy, the other was due to education and structural deficiencies in observation following the exam.

CONCLUSION

The combined method of failure mode effect analysis and cause-and-effect analysis reveals high-risk processes and suggests measures to reduce these risks. Failure modes and effects analysis is not well-known in healthcare but has significant potential for improving patient safety. Our findings emphasise the importance of adopting new techniques to reduce patient risk and carry out best practices in radiology.

Preliminary Exploration of Main Elements for Systematic Classification Development: Case Study of Patient Safety Incidents (Preprint)

Background

Currently, there is no holistic theoretical approach available for guiding classification development. On the basis of our recent classification development research in the area of patient safety in health information technology, this focus area would benefit from a more systematic approach. Although some valuable theoretical and methodological approaches have been presented, classification development literature typically is limited to methodological development in a specific domain or is practically oriented.

Objective

The main purposes of this study are to fill the methodological gap in classification development research by exploring possible elements of systematic development based on previous literature and to promote sustainable and well-grounded classification outcomes by identifying a set of recommended elements. Specifically, the aim is to answer the following question: what are the main elements for systematic classification development based on research evidence and our use case?

Methods

This study applied a qualitative research approach. On the basis of previous literature, preliminary elements for classification development were specified, as follows: defining a concept model, documenting the development process, incorporating multidisciplinary expertise, validating results, and maintaining the classification. The elements were compiled as guiding principles for the research process and tested in the case of patient safety incidents (n=501).

Results

The results illustrate classification development based on the chosen elements, with 4 examples of technology-induced errors. Examples from the use case regard usability, system downtime, clinical workflow, and medication section problems. The study results confirm and thus suggest that a more comprehensive and theory-based systematic approach promotes well-grounded classification work by enhancing transparency and possibilities for assessing the development process.

Conclusions

We recommend further testing the preliminary main elements presented in this study. The research presented herein could serve as a basis for future work. Our recently developed classification and the use case presented here serve as examples. Data retrieved from, for example, other type of electronic health records and use contexts could refine and validate the suggested methodological approach.

The associations of information system's support and nurses' documentation competence with the detection of documentation-related errors: Results from a nationwide survey

The use of information systems and electronic documentation has become a central part of a nurse's work, and it is expected to increase the quality of documentation and patient safety. However, errors related to documentation have been identified as a significant risk for the quality and safety of care. This study examined whether information system's support for documentation and nurses' documentation competence are associated with how frequently nurses detect documentation-related errors that have caused an adverse event. A nationwide survey was conducted in 2020, and a total of 3610 nurses participated. Results from linear regression analyses showed that high documentation support from the information system and high documentation competence were associated with fewer detected documentation-related errors. Nurses with low documentation support from the system and low documentation competence detected the most errors. The results highlight the need to develop electronic health record functions in a way that they better support accurate documentation. Furthermore, organisations should invest in ensuring the documentation skills of nurses and providing appropriate training.

Classification of Electronic Health Record-Related Patient Safety Incidents: Development and Validation Study

Background

It is assumed that the implementation of health information technology introduces new vulnerabilities within a complex sociotechnical health care system, but no international consensus exists on a standardized format for enhancing the collection, analysis, and interpretation of technology-induced errors.

Objective

This study aims to develop a classification for patient safety incident reporting associated with the use of mature electronic health records (EHRs). It also aims to validate the classification by using a data set of incidents during a 6-month period immediately after the implementation of a new EHR system.

Methods

The starting point of the classification development was the Finnish Technology-Induced Error Risk Assessment Scale tool, based on research on commonly recognized error types. A multiprofessional research team used iterative tests on consensus building to develop a classification system. The final classification, with preliminary descriptions of classes, was validated by applying it to analyze EHR-related error incidents (n=428) during the implementation phase of a new EHR system and also to evaluate this classification’s characteristics and applicability for reporting incidents. Interrater agreement was applied.

Results

The number of EHR-related patient safety incidents during the implementation period (n=501) was five-fold when compared with the preimplementation period (n=82). The literature identified new error types that were added to the emerging classification. Error types were adapted iteratively after several test rounds to develop a classification for reporting patient safety incidents in the clinical use of a high-maturity EHR system. Of the 427 classified patient safety incidents, interface problems accounted for 96 (22.5%) incident reports, usability problems for 73 (17.1%), documentation problems for 60 (14.1%), and clinical workflow problems for 33 (7.7%). Altogether, 20.8% (89/427) of reports were related to medication section problems, and downtime problems were rare (n=8). During the classification work, 14.8% (74/501) of reports of the original sample were rejected because of insufficient information, even though the reports were deemed to be related to EHRs. The interrater agreement during the blinded review was 97.7%.

Conclusions

This study presents a new classification for EHR-related patient safety incidents applicable to mature EHRs. The number of EHR-related patient safety incidents during the implementation period may reflect patient safety challenges during the implementation of a new type of high-maturity EHR system. The results indicate that the types of errors previously identified in the literature change with the EHR development cycle.

Association Between Symptoms of Patients With Heart Failure and Patient Outcomes Based on Electronic Nursing Records

We examined the association between symptoms (ie, dyspnea and pain) and patient outcomes (ie, length of stay, 30-day readmission, and death in hospital) among patients with heart failure using EMRs. This was a descriptive study that was conducted from July 1, 2014, to November 30, 2017. Participants were 754 hospitalized patients with heart failure (mean age, 70.62 ± 14.78 years; male-to-female ratio, 1:1.1). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, χ2 tests, and logistic regression analyses. Patients' average length of stay was 8.92 ± 13.12 days. Thirty-two patients (4.2%) were readmitted, and 100 patients (13.3%) died during hospitalization. Two-thirds (67.7%) experienced dyspnea, and 367 (48.7%) experienced pain. Symptoms and ICU admission were significantly related to patient outcomes. In the regression analyses, dyspnea, pain, and ICU admission were significantly related to higher-than-average lengths of stay. Dyspnea and ICU admission were related to death in hospital. Information regarding patients' symptoms, which was extracted from records, was a valuable resource in examining the relationship between symptoms and patient outcomes. The use of EMRs may be more advantageous than self-reported surveys when examining patients' symptom and utilizing big data.

Behavior change techniques to promote healthcare professionals' eHealth competency: A systematic review of interventions

INTRODUCTION

The use of eHealth is rapidly -->increasing; however, many healthcare professionals have insufficient eHealth competency. Consequently, interventions addressing eHealth competency might be useful in fostering the effective use of eHealth.

OBJECTIVE

Our systematic review aimed to identify and evaluate the behavior change techniques applied in interventions to promote healthcare professionals' eHealth competency.

METHODS

We conducted a systematic literature review following the Joanna Briggs Institute's Manual for Evidence Synthesis. Published quantitative studies were identified through screening PubMed, Embase, and CINAHL. Two reviewers independently performed full-text and quality assessment. Eligible interventions were targeted to any healthcare professional and aimed at promoting eHealth capability or motivation. We synthesized the interventions narratively using the Behavior Change Technique Taxonomy v1 and the COM-B model.

RESULTS

This review included 32 studies reporting 34 heterogeneous interventions that incorporated 29 different behavior change techniques. The interventions were most likely to improve the capability to use eHealth and less likely to enhance motivation toward using eHealth. The promising techniques to promote both capability and motivation were action planning and participatory approach. Information about colleagues' approval, emotional social support, monitoring emotions, restructuring or adding objects to the environment, and credible source are techniques worth further investigation.

CONCLUSIONS

We found that interventions tended to focus on promoting capability, although motivation would be as crucial for competent eHealth performance. Our findings indicated that empathy, encouragement, and user-centered changes in the work environment could improve eHealth competency as a whole. Evidence-based techniques should be favored in the development of interventions, and further intervention research should focus on nurses and multifaceted competency required for using different eHealth systems and devices.

Development of a Taxonomy for Medication-Related Patient Safety Events Related to Health Information Technology in Pediatrics

BACKGROUND

Although electronic health records (EHRs) are designed to improve patient safety, they have been associated with serious patient harm. An agreed-upon and standard taxonomy for classifying health information technology (HIT) related patient safety events does not exist.

OBJECTIVES

We aimed to develop and evaluate a taxonomy for medication-related patient safety events associated with HIT and validate it using a set of events involving pediatric patients.

METHODS

We performed a literature search to identify existing classifications for HIT-related safety events, which were assessed using real-world pediatric medication-related patient safety events extracted from two sources: patient safety event reporting system (ERS) reports and information technology help desk (HD) tickets. A team of clinical and patient safety experts used iterative tests of change and consensus building to converge on a single taxonomy. The final devised taxonomy was applied to pediatric medication-related events assess its characteristics, including interrater reliability and agreement.

RESULTS

Literature review identified four existing classifications for HIT-related patient safety events, and one was iteratively adapted to converge on a singular taxonomy. Safety events relating to usability accounted for a greater proportion of ERS reports, compared with HD tickets (37 vs. 20%, p = 0.022). Conversely, events pertaining to incorrect configuration accounted for a greater proportion of HD tickets, compared with ERS reports (63 vs. 8%, p < 0.01). Interrater agreement (%) and reliability (kappa) were 87.8% and 0.688 for ERS reports and 73.6% and 0.556 for HD tickets, respectively.

DISCUSSION

A standardized taxonomy for medication-related patient safety events related to HIT is presented. The taxonomy was validated using pediatric events. Further evaluation can assess whether the taxonomy is suitable for nonmedication-related events and those occurring in other patient populations.

CONCLUSION

Wider application of standardized taxonomies will allow for peer benchmarking and facilitate collaborative interinstitutional patient safety improvement efforts.

Human-Computer Interaction, Ethics, and Biomedical Informatics

Objectives : To provide an overview of recent work at the intersection of Biomedical Informatics, Human-Computer Interaction, and Ethics.

Methods : Search terms for Human-Computer Interaction, Biomedical Informatics, and Ethics were used to identify relevant papers published between 2017 and 2019.Relevant papers were identified through multiple methods, including database searches, manual reviews of citations, recent publications, and special collections, as well as through peer recommendations. Identified articles were reviewed and organized into broad themes.

Results : We identified relevant papers at the intersection of Biomedical Informatics, Human-Computer Interactions, and Ethics in over a dozen journals. The content of these papers was organized into three broad themes: ethical issues associated with systems in use, systems design, and responsible conduct of research.

Conclusions : The results of this overview demonstrate an active interest in exploring the ethical implications of Human-Computer Interaction concerns in Biomedical Informatics. Papers emphasizing ethical concerns associated with patient-facing tools, mobile devices, social media, privacy, inclusivity, and e-consent reflect the growing prominence of these topics in biomedical informatics research. New questions in these areas will likely continue to arise with the growth of precision medicine and citizen science.

Electronic charts do not facilitate the recognition of patient hazards by advanced medical students: A randomized controlled study

Chart review is an important tool to identify patient hazards. Most advanced medical students perform poorly during chart review but can learn how to identify patient hazards context-independently. Many hospitals have implemented electronic health records, which enhance patient safety but also pose challenges. We investigated whether electronic charts impair advanced medical students’ recognition of patient hazards compared with traditional paper charts. Fifth-year medical students were randomized into two equal groups. Both groups attended a lecture on patient hazards and a training session on handling electronic health records. One group reviewed an electronic chart with 12 standardized patient hazards and then reviewed another case in a paper chart; the other group reviewed the charts in reverse order. The two case scenarios (diabetes and gastrointestinal bleeding) were used as the first and second case equally often. After each case, the students were briefed about the patient safety hazards. In total, 78.5% of the students handed in their notes for evaluation. Two blinded raters independently assessed the number of patient hazards addressed in the students’ notes. For the diabetes case, the students identified a median of 4.0 hazards [25%–75% quantiles (Q25–Q75): 2.0–5.5] in the electronic chart and 5.0 hazards (Q25–Q75: 3.0–6.75) in the paper chart (equivalence testing, p = 0.005). For the gastrointestinal bleeding case, the students identified a median of 5.0 hazards (Q25–Q75: 4.0–6.0) in the electronic chart and 5.0 hazards (Q25–Q75: 3.0–6.0) in the paper chart (equivalence testing, p < 0.001). We detected no improvement between the first case [median 5.0 (Q25–Q75: 3.0–6.0)] and second case [median, 5.0 (Q25–Q75: 3.0–6.0); p < 0.001, test for equivalence]. Electronic charts do not seem to facilitate advanced medical students’ recognition of patient hazards during chart review and may impair expertise formation.

Quality and Safety in eHealth: The Need to Build the Evidence Base

Research in the area of health technology safety has demonstrated that technology may both improve patient safety and introduce new types of technology-induced errors. Thus, there is a need to publish safety science literature to develop an evidence-based research base, on which we can continually develop new, safe technologies and improve patient safety. The aim of this viewpoint is to argue for the need to advance evidence-based research in health informatics, so that new technologies can be designed, developed, and implemented for their safety prior to their use in health care. This viewpoint offers a historical perspective on the development of health informatics and safety literature in the area of health technology. I argue for the need to conduct safety studies of technologies used by health professionals and consumers to develop an evidence base in this area. Ongoing research is necessary to improve the quality and safety of health technologies. Over the past several decades, we have seen health informatics emerge as a discipline, with growing research in the field examining the design, development, and implementation of different health technologies and new challenges such as those associated with the quality and safety of technology use. Future research will need to focus on how we can continually extend safety science in this area. There is a need to integrate evidence-based research into the design, development, and implementation of health technologies to improve their safety and reduce technology-induced errors.

Staff expectations for the implementation of an electronic health record system: a qualitative study using normalisation process theory

Background

Global evidence suggests a range of benefits for introducing electronic health record (EHR) systems to improve patient care. However, implementing EHR within healthcare organisations is complex and, in the United Kingdom (UK), uptake has been slow. More research is needed to explore factors influencing successful implementation. This study explored staff expectations for change and outcome following procurement of a commercial EHR system by a large academic acute NHS hospital in the UK.

Methods

Qualitative interviews were conducted with 14 members of hospital staff who represented a variety of user groups across different specialities within the hospital. The four components of Normalisation Process Theory (Coherence, Cognitive participation, Collective action and Reflexive monitoring) provided a theoretical framework to interpret and report study findings.

Results

Health professionals had a common understanding for the rationale for EHR implementation (Coherence). There was variation in willingness to engage with and invest time into EHR (Cognitive participation) at an individual, professional and organisational level. Collective action (whether staff feel able to use the EHR) was influenced by context and perceived user-involvement in EHR design and planning of the implementation strategy. When appraising EHR (Reflexive monitoring), staff anticipated short and long-term benefits. Staff perceived that quality and safety of patient care would be improved with EHR implementation, but that these benefits may not be immediate. Some staff perceived that use of the system may negatively impact patient care. The findings indicate that preparedness for EHR use could mitigate perceived threats to the quality and safety of care.

Conclusions

Health professionals looked forward to reaping the benefits from EHR use. Variations in level of engagement suggest early components of the implementation strategy were effective, and that more work was needed to involve users in preparing them for use. A clearer understanding as to how staff groups and services differentially interact with the EHR as they go about their daily work was required. The findings may inform other hospitals and healthcare systems on actions that can be taken prior to EHR implementation to reduce concerns for quality and safety of patient care and improve the chance of successful implementation.

Merits, features, and desiderata to be considered when developing electronic health records with embedded clinical decision support systems in Palestinian hospitals: a consensus study

BACKGROUND

Electronic health records (EHRs) with embedded clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) have the potential to improve healthcare delivery. This study was conducted to explore merits, features, and desiderata to be considered when planning for, designing, developing, implementing, piloting, evaluating, maintaining, upgrading, and/or using EHRs with CDSSs.

METHODS

A mixed-method combining the Delphi technique and Analytic Hierarchy Process was used. Potentially important items were collected after a thorough search of the literature and from interviews with key contact experts (n = 19). Opinions and views of the 76 panelists on the use of EHRs were also explored. Iterative Delphi rounds were conducted to achieve consensus on 122 potentially important items by a panel of 76 participants. Items on which consensus was achieved were ranked in the order of their importance using the Analytic Hierarchy Process.

RESULTS

Of the 122 potentially important items presented to the panelists in the Delphi rounds, consensus was achieved on 110 (90.2%) items. Of these, 16 (14.5%) items were related to the demographic characteristics of the patient, 16 (14.5%) were related to prescribing medications, 16 (14.5%) were related to checking prescriptions and alerts, 14 (12.7%) items were related to the patient's identity, 13 (11.8%) items were related to patient assessment, 12 (10.9%) items were related to the quality of alerts, 11 (10%) items were related to admission and discharge of the patient, 9 (8.2%) items were general features, and 3 (2.7%) items were related to diseases and making diagnosis.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, merits, features, and desiderata to be considered when planning for, designing, developing, implementing, piloting, evaluating, maintaining, upgrading, and/or using EHRs with CDSSs were explored. Considering items on which consensus was achieved might promote congruence and safe use of EHRs. Further studies are still needed to determine if these recommendations can improve patient safety and outcomes in Palestinian hospitals.

Experienced time pressure and stress: electronic health records usability and information technology competence play a role

BACKGROUND

Electronic health records (EHRs) are an elementary part of the work of registered nurses (RNs) in healthcare. RNs are the largest group of healthcare workers, and their experiences with EHRs and their informatics competence play a crucial role in a fluent workflow. The present study examined EHR usability factors and nurses' informatics competence factors related to self-reported time pressure and psychological distress.

METHODS

A nationwide survey was conducted for working-age registered nurses in 2017. The study sample included 3607 nurses (5% men) in Finland. The association of age, sex, employment sector, EHR usability factors, and nurses' informatics competence factors with time pressure and psychological distress were examined with analyses of covariance.

RESULTS

The EHR usability factors that were associated with high time pressure were low EHR reliability and poor user-friendliness. Regarding the nurses' informatics competence factors, only low e-Care competence was associated with time pressure. Of the EHR usability factors, low EHR reliability and low support for cooperation were associated with high psychological distress. Of the nurses' informatics competence factors, low e-Care competence was associated with high psychological distress.

CONCLUSIONS

Unreliability and poor user-friendliness of EHRs seem to be prominent sources of time pressure and psychological distress among registered nurses. User-friendly EHR systems and digital tools in healthcare are needed. Nurses' competence to use eHealth tools to tailor patient care should be strengthened through organizational and regional actions. For example, house rules about how to use eHealth tools and instructions on common practices in cooperation with other organizations could be useful.

The effects and preventability of 2627 patient safety incidents related to health information technology failures: a retrospective analysis of 10 years of incident reporting in England and Wales

BACKGROUND

The use of health information technology (IT) is rapidly increasing to support improvements in the delivery of care. Although health IT is delivering huge benefits, new technology can also introduce unique risks. Despite these risks, evidence on the preventability and effects of health IT failures on patients is scarce. In our study we therefore sought to evaluate the preventability and effects of health IT failures by examining patient safety incidents in England and Wales.

METHODS

We designed our study as a retrospective analysis of 10 years of incident reporting in England and Wales. We used text mining with the words "computer", "system", "workstation", and "network" to explore free-text incident descriptors to identify incidents related to health IT failures following a previously described approach. We then applied an n-gram model of searching to identify contiguous sequences of words and provide spatial context. We examined incident details, recorded harm, and preventability. Standard descriptive statistics were applied. Degree of harm was identified according to standardised definitions and preventability was assessed by two independent reviewers.

FINDINGS

We identified 2627 incidents related to health IT failures. 2557 (97%) of 2627 incidents were assessed for harm (70 incidents were excluded). 2106 (82%) of 2557 health IT failures caused no harm to patients, 331 (13%) caused low harm, 102 (4%) caused moderate harm, 14 (1%) caused severe harm, and four (<1%) contributed to the death of a patient. 1964 (75%) of 2627 incidents were deemed to be preventable.

INTERPRETATION

Health IT is fundamental to the delivery of high-quality care, yet there is a poor understanding of the effects of IT failures on patient safety and whether they can be prevented. Failures are complex and involve interlinked aspects of technology, people, and the environment. Health IT failures are undoubtedly a potential source of substantial harm, but they are likely to be under-reported. Worryingly, three-quarters of IT failures are potentially preventable. There is a need to see health IT as a fundamental tenet of patient safety, develop better methods for capturing the effects of IT failures on patients, and adopt simple measures to reduce their probability and mitigate their risk.

FUNDING

The National Institutes of Health Research Imperial Patient Safety Translational Research Centre at Imperial College London.

Health Information Technology Acceptance Framework for diabetes management

This study examined the level of acceptance of Health Information Technology (HIT) as tools for diabetes care and management, in six selected tertiary hospitals in southwestern zone of Nigeria. Using both quantitative and qualitative methods, this study was conducted amongst selected healthcare stakeholders namely Nurses, Doctors, Laboratory Scientists, Pharmacists, ICT unit Professionals, Medical Record Officers, and Type-2 diabetes out-patients available in the designated hospitals. Adapting Technology Acceptance and Chronic Care Models, the level of HIT acceptance by the respondents in the study area was measured in terms of Perceived Ease-of-Use, Perceived Usefulness, and the Perceived Unintended Consequences relating to HIT, while also considering the roles of the government, community and healthcare organizations. One hundred and fifty (150) respondents were examined, each for both Staff and Patients, and the factor variables studied on a 5-point Likert rating scale of measurement from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree). The results revealed strong perception of Staff and Patients about HIT implementation and acceptance and showed that in some cases, the perception of Staff and patients about HIT acceptance are the same, while different in some. The study concluded that for acceptability of HIT, hospitals have to embark on 'continuous' training for the HIT users, so that users would familiarize themselves with the system, and it will be fully incorporated into their workflow. Based on the findings, a conceptual Health Information Technology Acceptance Framework for Chronic diseases' management, especially for diabetes mellitus was developed.

Perceptions of nursing professionals about the use of patient safety computerization

OBJECTIVE

Getting to know the perceptions of nursing professionals about the use of computerization in promoting patient safety.

METHODS

Qualitative research performed at a hospital in the southern region of Brazil. Data collection was performed in November 2016, through a sociodemographic questionnaire and recorded interviews, guided by the question: "Tell me about the relationship between computerization and patient safety in this hospital". The transcribed statements were submitted to the thematic content analysis proposed by Bardin.

RESULTS

Among the participants, 21 were nurses and 31 were nursing technicians. From the discourses, the following categories were created, Information Technology Contributions for the promotion of safe care, and Information Technology Fragilities: indirect implications for safe care.

CONCLUSIONS

The participants perceived the computerized system as a resource that promoted greater patient safety. However, there is a need to improve the infrastructure and the technical capacity of the team for an efficient use of the system.

Healthcare practitioner behaviours that influence unsafe use of hospital information systems

This study aims to investigate healthcare practitioner behaviour in adopting Health Information Systems which could affect patients' safety and quality of health. A qualitative study was conducted based on a semi-structured interview protocol on 31 medical doctors in three Malaysian government hospitals implementing the Total Hospital Information Systems. The period of study was between March and May 2015. A thematic qualitative analysis was performed on the resultant data to categorize them into relevant themes. Four themes emerged as healthcare practitioners' behaviours that influence the unsafe use of Hospital Information Systems. The themes include (1) carelessness, (2) workarounds, (3) noncompliance to procedure, and (4) copy and paste habit. By addressing these behaviours, the hospital management could further improve patient safety and the quality of patient care.

An Evidence-Based Tool for Safe Configuration of Electronic Health Records: The eSafety Checklist

BACKGROUND

Electronic health records (EHRs) are transforming the way health care is delivered. They are central to improving the quality of patient care and have been attributed to making health care more accessible, reliable, and safe. However, in recent years, evidence suggests that specific features and functions of EHRs can introduce new, unanticipated patient safety concerns that can be mitigated by safe configuration practices.

OBJECTIVE

This article outlines the development of a detailed and comprehensive evidence-based checklist of safe configuration practices for use by clinical informatics professionals when configuring hospital-based EHRs.

METHODS

A literature review was conducted to synthesize evidence on safe configuration practices; data were analyzed to elicit themes of common EHR system capabilities. Two rounds of testing were completed with end users to inform checklist design and usability. This was followed by a four-member expert panel review, where each item was rated for clarity (clear, not clear), and importance (high, medium, low).

RESULTS

An expert panel consisting of three clinical informatics professionals and one health information technology expert reviewed the checklist for clarity and importance. Medium and high importance ratings were considered affirmative responses. Of the 870 items contained in the original checklist, 535 (61.4%) received 100% affirmative agreement among all four panelists. Clinical panelists had a higher affirmative agreement rate of 75.5% (656 items). Upon detailed analysis, items with 100% clinician agreement were retained in the checklist with the exception of 47 items and the addition of 33 items, resulting in a total of 642 items in the final checklist.

CONCLUSION

Safe implementation of EHRs requires consideration of both technical and sociotechnical factors through close collaboration of health information technology and clinical informatics professionals. The recommended practices described in this checklist provide systems implementation guidance that should be considered when EHRs are being configured, implemented, audited, or updated, to improve system safety and usability.

Sociotechnical factors influencing unsafe use of hospital information systems: A qualitative study in Malaysian government hospitals

The objective of this study is to identify factors influencing unsafe use of hospital information systems in Malaysian government hospitals. Semi-structured interviews with 31 medical doctors in three Malaysian government hospitals implementing total hospital information systems were conducted between March and May 2015. A thematic qualitative analysis was performed on the resultant data to deduce the relevant themes. A total of five themes emerged as the factors influencing unsafe use of a hospital information system: (1) knowledge, (2) system quality, (3) task stressor, (4) organization resources, and (5) teamwork. These qualitative findings highlight that factors influencing unsafe use of a hospital information system originate from multidimensional sociotechnical aspects. Unsafe use of a hospital information system could possibly lead to the incidence of errors and thus raises safety risks to the patients. Hence, multiple interventions (e.g. technology systems and teamwork) are required in shaping high-quality hospital information system use.

FIN-TIERA: A Tool for Assessing Technology Induced Errors

Background: Due to the complexity of healthcare processes, the potential for Health Information Systems (HIS) to cause technology-induced errors is a growing concern. Health Information Technology (HIT) errors nearly always threaten good patient care and can lead to patient harm. Instruments to allow hospitals to proactively identify areas of Electronic Health Records (EHR) safety, to set priorities and to intervene before incidents occur are currently underdeveloped.

Objectives: The aim was to design a Finnish questionnaire to measure EHR users’ perceptions of common EHR-related safety concerns in a specialized hospital district context through the lens of the theory of socio-technical dimensions. Moreover, the aim was to measure its reliability by assessing its internal consistency and validity, namely its content and construct validity.

Methods: We constructed the instrument, based on the socio-technical theory and Sittig and Singh’s study findings, through a multi-stage process, and expert panels evaluated it to ensure its content validity. The final questionnaire consisted of eight error types to be assessed on a qualitative risk matrix scale. We used a cross-sectional design to test its psychometric properties. Application of the FIN-TIERA Questionnaire to a sample of 2864 clinicians in 2015 then served to evaluate the instrument’s reliability as well as its construct validity.

Results: All eight multi-item scales showed high internal consistency (range α > 0.798-0.932 and CR 0.845-0.983). The average variance extracted (AVE) served to assess the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The results of the model fit with AGFI = .86, CFI = .898, RMSEA = .052, SRMR = .048 were deemed acceptable. For all factors, AVE yielded values > 0.5, which indicates adequate convergence and supports convergent validity. Discriminant validity was established for five out of a total of eight latent variables.

Conclusions: FIN-TIERA is a new multi-dimensional instrument which may be a useful tool for assessing risk in EHR. Our testing shows its potential for use in-hospital settings: the involvement of EHR users demonstrated initial reliability and validity. Further research is recommended to assess the instrument’s psychometric properties.

Reporting medical device safety incidents to regulatory authorities: An analysis and classification of technology-induced errors

The European Union Medical Device Directive 2007/47/EC1 defines software with a medical purpose as a medical device. The implementation of health information technology suffers from patient safety problems that require effective post-market surveillance. The purpose of this study was to review, classify and discuss the incident data submitted to a nationwide database of the Finnish National Competent Authority with other forms of data. We analysed incident reports submitted to the authority database by users of electronic health records from 2010 to 2015. We identified 138 valid reports. Adverse events associated with electronic health record vulnerabilities, clustered around certain error types, cause serious harm and occur in all types of healthcare settings. The low rate of reported incidents raises questions about not only the challenges associated with medical software oversight but also the obstacles for reporting.