Information Technology

Devin, J., Cleary, B. J., & Cullinan, S. (2020). The impact of health information technology on prescribing errors in hospitals: A systematic review and behaviour change technique analysis. Systematic Reviews, 9(1), 275. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-020-01510-7

The above article is a research that investigated the impact of health information technologies on prescribing errors in hospitals. The research is a systematic review of previous studies on the topic. A search was performed on databases that included MEDLINE, Web of Science, EMBASE, and CINAHL. The search yielded 35 studies that were included in the research. The results showed that the use of health information technologies were associated with a reduction in the rate of prescribing errors. The results demonstrated that successful implementation of a health information technology for use to promote medication safety depends on organizational support and use of effective strategies. Examples include the involvement of the prescribers in the design of the systems, training them, modifying health information systems according to the given feedback, and direct observation of prescribers when using the system. It also includes developing system alerts to prompt prescribers and monitoring the electronic orders for error detection.

Nurses and nursing students can use the above article in their practice. They can use it to propose effective strategies that contribute to successful use of health information technologies in medications management. They can also use it to learn about their roles in the implementation of health information technologies to promote medication safety. This includes providing feedback on system use and efficiency and their involvement in system designs and improvements.

Kruse, C. S., Mileski, M., Syal, R., MacNeil, L., Chabarria, E., &Basch, C. (2021).Evaluating the relationship between health information technology and safer-prescribing in the long-term care setting: A systematic review.Technology and Health Care, 29(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3233/THC-202196

The above study is a systematic review that evaluated the relationship between the use of health information technology and safer-prescribing in the long-term care settings. The study revealed that most of the existing evidence has focused largely on the use of health information technologies in general healthcare settings, leading to inadequate evidence on technology efficacy in long-term care. The researchers obtained their articles from databases that included CINAHL and MEDLINE. An analysis performed on 14 articles included in the study showed that the most common technologies used included electronic medication administration records and electronic health records. The results further showed that technology use in healthcare settings resulted in the reduction in risk of medication errors, missed dosage, improved clinical processes, documentation, and strengthened clinical focus among healthcare providers. The authors were keen to note that institutional support is crucial for the successful use of health information technologies. This could be seen from the recommended best practices such as provider training, supervision, and involvement in system design, use, and evaluation.

Nurses can use this article in their practice to advocate for the need for technology use to prevent medication errors in their organizations. They can put forward the results which showed the need for the technologies based on their-associated benefits such as reduction in risk and error rates. Nurses can also use it to identify effective strategies for managing potential barriers associated with technology use in healthcare.

Küng, K., Aeschbacher, K., Rütsche, A., Goette, J., Zürcher, S., Schmidli, J., &Schwendimann, R. (2021). Effect of barcode technology on medication preparation safety: A quasi-experimental study. International Journal for Quality in Health Care, 33(1), mzab043. https://doi.org/10.1093/intqhc/mzab043

The above article is a quasi-experimental study that investigated the effect of barcode technology on medication preparation safety. The authors noted that most of the medication administration errors arise during medication preparation stage. They also identified that barcode technology promises to reduce the risk and rate of medication preparation errors in nursing practice. As a result, they adopted a pre-post design study in medical and surgical units in a tertiary hospital. The outcome measures included rate of medication preparation errors and time-based staff performance. The results of this study revealed that barcode verification technology was effective in reducing medication preparation errors. This reduction translated into improved safety, quality, and efficiency in medication preparation. The results also found no errors that include wrong form, wrong patient, and wrong dosage errors post-implementation of the study intervention. The technology also reduced the time nurses spent preparing medications. Nurses can use the information from this article to support barcode technology use to prevent and minimize medication errors. They can also use it to achieve their desired efficiency in medication-related processes.