Safety vs. Profit: Are Patients Losing this Battle?
By Catherine D. Bertram, Esquire and Salvatore J. Zambri, Esquire
A recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine, reports that despite “a consensus that the use of health information technology should lead to more efficient, safer, and higher-quality care” , less than 2% of U.S. Hospitals have invested in a comprehensive electronic medical record system. The research was funded by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. This study did not include Veterans Affairs (“VA”) Hospitals, which have been using computerized medical records for more than a decade.
Of the 63.1% of hospitals surveyed, only 1.5% of U.S. hospitals have a comprehensive electronic-records system. Computerized physician order systems, which have been shown to prevent medication errors, have only been installed in 17% of U.S. hospitals.
According to a recent article in the Washington Post, “The new numbers come as no surprise. Hospitals and doctors have been slow to make the leap to paperless despite evidence suggesting electronic health records can improve efficiency and help reduce deaths and injuries caused by medical errors.”
If you believe you were injured as the result of medical error, you can talk to experienced attorney at Regan Zambri & Long to find out about your rights. Please click here to contact us or call 202-463-3030.