Assessment of an electronic patient record system on discharge prescribing errors in a Tertiary University Hospital

BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making

Eileen Relihan¹  Michael Patrick O’Shea²  Cormac Kennedy³  Martina Hennessy³  Michael Barry³  Kieran Harkin⁴ 

[1] Department of Pharmacology, Saint James Hospital, Dublin, Ireland;Department of Pharmacology, Saint James Hospital, Dublin, Ireland;Dublin Southeast Network Academic Track Internship, Dublin, Ireland;School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland;Department of Pharmacology, Saint James Hospital, Dublin, Ireland;School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland;Inchicore Family Doctors, Dublin, Ireland;

关键词: Discharge;    Prescribing;    Transition;    E-health;    Medical education;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12911-021-01551-5

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundPrescribing error represent a significant source of preventable harm to patients. Prescribing errors at discharge, including omission of pre-admission medications (PAM), are particularly harmful as they frequently propagate following discharge. This study assesses the impact of an educational intervention and introduction of an electronic patient record (EPR) in the same centre on omission of PAM at discharge using a pragmatic design. A survey of newly qualified doctors is used to contextualise findings.MethodsDischarge prescriptions and discharge summaries were reviewed at discharge, and compared to admission medicine lists, using a paper-based chart system. Discrepancies were noted, using Health Information and Quality Authority guidelines for discharge prescribing. An educational intervention was conducted. Further review of discharge prescriptions and discharge summaries took place. Following introduction of an EPR, review of discharge summaries and discharge prescriptions was repeated. A survey was administered to recently qualified doctors (interns), and analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis.ResultsOmission of PAM as prescribed or discontinued items at discharge occurs frequently. An educational intervention did not significantly change prescribing error rates (U = 1255.5, p = 0.206). EPR introduction did significantly reduce omission of PAM on discharge prescribing (U = 694, p < 0.001), however there was also a reduction in the rate of deliberate discontinuation of PAM at discharge (U = 1237.5, p = 0.007). Survey results demonstrated that multiple sources are required to develop a discharge prescription. Time pressure, access to documentation and lack of admission medicine reconciliation are frequently cited causes of discharge prescribing error.ConclusionThis study verified passive educational interventions alone do not improve discharge prescribing. Introduction of EPR improved discharge prescribing, but negatively impacted deliberate discontinuation of PAM at discharge. This is attributable to reduced access to key sources of information used in formulating discharge prescriptions, and separation of the discontinuation function from the prescribing function on the EPR discharge application.

【 授权许可】

CC BY