New US computer system could cut medical errors

[Guest guest]

New US computer system could cut medical errors

By Todd Zwillich

WASHINGTON, Dec 11 (Reuters Health) - An experimental computerized

system could soon allow doctors, hospitals, and pharmacies across the US

healthcare system to access patients' real-time electronic medical

information.

The new system is due to undergo its first test in about 6 months in a

yet-to-be-determined urban area. Supporters predict that the system will

help healthcare providers share critical information in a way that cuts

medical errors while still protecting patient privacy.

A report from the Institute of Medicine 2 years ago blamed medical

mistakes for 44,000 to 98,000 deaths in the US each year. A high

percentage of those deaths are due to prescription errors that many

experts agree could be prevented with better computer systems and

information sharing.

" With today's technology, we simply cannot accept this circumstance, "

said Dr. Jack Lewin, who heads the board of directors at the Patient

Safety Institute (PSI).

The nonprofit consortium of hospitals, medical groups and consumer

organizations has raised $8 million from technology information firms to

test a new computer platform for medical information sharing.

The system works by compiling information in five key areas:

prescription drug history, allergies, immunization records, laboratory

tests, and disease diagnoses. Any participating pharmacy, hospital,

health system, or doctor could access the information in real time, as

long as the patient gives consent to share the information.

Doctors in the hospital or in a private office could get at the

information using any hand-held computer or personal computer terminal,

provided they have access to the system's information platform. The

system would automatically update a patient's real-time record with each

new healthcare transaction.

In theory, that should help doctors avoid giving medicines to allergic

patients or prescribing two medicines that could interact dangerously in

the same person.

Because the system is encrypted and requires patient consent, it

" guarantees secure transmission that is properly released, " said Jane L.

Delgado, the president of the Alliance for Hispanic Health. Delgado's

organization and the National Consumer League both sit on PSI's board.

But if the new system sounds complicated, that's because it is. In some

cases it will link existing databases at hospitals and pharmacies, while

in others new databases of patient information will have to be

constructed.

Obtaining such a system will not come cheap, especially for hospitals or

physician offices that do not have detailed computerized patient records

already at work.

" There certainly will be costs that hospitals will have to bear to be

able to participate in this, " said Lewin, who is also CEO of the

California Medical Association. Lewin also acknowledged that many

doctors could resist efforts to automate their offices or share patient

records via computer.

Many individual health systems or hospitals have computerized systems

that allow doctors and pharmacists to access key patient and safety

information. But concerns over cost, technological know-how, and privacy

protections have stalled most efforts to link hospitals and health

systems with individual doctors' offices and pharmacies.

Supporters of the new system say that PSI's approach is different

because it is nonprofit and because it has consumer groups on board to

safeguard patient privacy.

" Everybody owns this. The whole idea is open architecture, " said Dr.

F. e, president of the national Medical Group Management

Association.

Lewin said that PSI's board will choose a site for its first test run in

early 2002. The site is likely to be an urban area with good computer

infrastructure already in place. If the trial run is successful, the

institute then plans to move on to rural areas, where medical

information sharing is often most lacking.

" I believe it has a high probability of success, " said Visa founder Dee

Hock, who is serving as an advisor to PSI. The company used computerized

information sharing to bring the card to thousands of financial

institutions around the world.