Stanford: EHRs Can Help Reduce Hospital Infections

A recent study from Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif., found that pulling information from a patient's electronic health record and creating a computerized safety checklist reduced the rates of a common hospital-acquired infection.

Researchers found the automated checklists based on EHR data decreased the rates of central line-associated bloodstream infections, or CLABSI, from 2.6 per 1,000 days to 0.7.

Alerts were generated for physicians if specific events needed to occur, such as when a patient's central line was due for a change.

"Electronic medical records are data-rich and information-poor," said Natalie Pageler, MD, the study's lead author. "Our new tool lets physicians focus on taking care of the patient while automating some of the background safety checks."

More Articles on EHRs:
From "DOA" to Stage 6: Akron Children's IT Turnaround
Study: Health IT Has Unmet Potential for Infection Preventionists
Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records: Does it Improve Health Outcomes?

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