Patient Safety Risks during On-Demand Telehealth Referrals and Implications for Human Factors Research

2021 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 500-504
Author(s):  
Kylie M. Gomes ◽  
Katharine T. Adams ◽  
Ethan Booker ◽  
Raj M. Ratwani
Keyword(s):  
Patient Safety ◽  
Human Factors ◽  
Safety Concern ◽  
On Demand ◽  
Safety Risks ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Missed Diagnosis ◽  
Human Factors Research

The COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly accelerated the adoptionof on-demand telehealth as a way to keep patients and providers safe from viral transmission. However, theconstrained timelines and challenging conditions under which telehealth was implemented along with the factthat many patientsand providers are interacting in a new modality raisesconcerns about the potential for unintended patient safety risks that have yet to be fully understood. With the surge in telehealth patient volumeduringthe pandemic,on demand telehealth has served as a way to triageand refer patients who need additional in-person evaluation and treatment. One safety concern is whether patients who are referred are successfully following through on in-person care referrals as thefailure to seekin-person care may lead to increased risk of delayed or missed diagnosis. This study aimsto evaluate whether patientsare successfully fulfilling their in -person referralsfollowingareferralfromon-demandtelehealth through retrospective analysis of a subset of telehealth referral datafrom a large healthcare system. Of the 911 on-demand telehealth visitswith a referral to in-person care, only 689showed anin-person care encounter following the telehealthvisit and only 75-85% ofmore immediate urgency in-person referrals were fulfilled within the recommended time period of 24 hours. This preliminary data highlights theneed for amore comprehensiveanalysisof the telehealth referral processand the application of human factors methodsto understand and address barriers and risks associated with telehealth referrals and successful follow up.

Circumstances and outcomes of falls in hospital for adults with communication disability secondary to stroke: A qualitative synthesis

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Rebecca Sullivan ◽  
Ian Skinner ◽  
Katherine Harding ◽  
Bronwyn Hemsley
Keyword(s):  
Patient Safety ◽  
Reference Model ◽  
Safety Concern ◽  
Secondary Analysis ◽  
Falls Prevention ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Qualitative Synthesis ◽  
Hospitalised Patients ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Communication Disability

BACKGROUND: Falls are a significant patient safety concern in hospital. Adult patients with stroke, and those with communication disability, are at an increased risk of falls during their hospital admission compared to patients without stroke or communication disability. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this review is to determine the circumstances and outcomes of falls in hospitalised patients with communication disability following stroke. METHOD: A qualitative synthesis of 16 papers according to the Generic Reference Model of patient safety. This is a secondary analysis of studies in a systematic review of the association between communication disability after stroke and falls in hospitalised patients. RESULTS: In studies including participants with communication disability, falls commonly occurred at the patient bedside, during the day, and in transfers. However, no studies provided individual or group specifically detailing the circumstances and outcomes of falls of the included participants with communication disability. CONCLUSION: Research to date provides scant evidence on the circumstances and outcomes of falls in hospital patients with communication disability after stroke. This review performs a useful function in highlighting a glaring gap in the literature and the urgent need to enrich hospital falls prevention research that includes patients with communication disability following stroke. Findings of this review are discussed in relation to providing a framework for analysis of for future research.

Abstract 17598: More Than One in Five Older Veterans are Hospitalized for Bleeding Following Initiation of Warfarin for Atrial Fibrillation

Circulation ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 132 (suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
John A Dodson ◽  
Andrew Petrone ◽  
David Gagnon ◽  
Mary E Tinetti ◽  
Harlan M Krumholz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Atrial Fibrillation ◽  
Oral Anticoagulants ◽  
Bleeding Event ◽  
Bleeding Risk ◽  
Bleeding Events ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Anticoagulation Clinics ◽  
Comorbidity Burden

Introduction: Clinicians are hesitant to prescribe oral anticoagulants to older adults with atrial fibrillation (AF) due to concerns over bleeding risk. Hypothesis: As many data on bleeding events are from trials of rigorously selected patients, we hypothesized that major bleeding events (requiring hospitalization) would be more common than previously reported. Methods: We created a retrospective cohort of 31,951 Veterans with AF aged ≥75 years who were new referrals to VA anticoagulation clinics (warfarin) from 1/1/02 - 12/31/12. Patients with comorbid conditions requiring warfarin (e.g. pulmonary embolus) were excluded. Data were extracted from the VA electronic medical record and linked with Medicare claims data for subsequent hospitalizations. The primary outcome was any hospitalization for bleeding. We identified bleeding subtypes by source, and compared characteristics of patients with and without bleeding hospitalizations. Results: Mean population age was 81.1 years, 98.1% were male, and 8.4% were nonwhite. Over a median follow-up period of 2.62 years, 7288 patients (22.8%) were hospitalized for bleeding. There were 12,004 total bleeding events; overall, 980 (13.4%) patients experienced multiple events. The most common bleeding sources (first event) were gastrointestinal (50.8%), genitourinary (21.6%), and intracranial (9.4%) (Figure). The median time to first bleeding event was 1.59 years. Patients hospitalized for bleeding were more likely to have coronary disease (48.4% vs. 40.9%, P<0.01); COPD (28.4% vs. 24.7%, P<0.01); chronic kidney disease (17.8% vs. 16.0%, P<0.01); CHF (34.7% vs. 29.5%, P<0.01), and labile INR (63.3% vs. 53.7%, P<0.01). The rate of hospitalization for stroke over the same time period was 5.0%. Conclusions: After initiating warfarin, over one in five older Veterans are hospitalized for bleeding, most commonly from a gastrointestinal source. Comorbidity burden and labile INR place these patients at increased risk.

scholarly journals Delivering safe and effective test-result communication, management and follow-up: a mixed-methods study protocol

BMJ Open ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. e020235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria R Dahm ◽  
Andrew Georgiou ◽  
Johanna I Westbrook ◽  
David Greenfield ◽  
Andrea R Horvath ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Patient Safety ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Safety Risks ◽  
Semistructured Interviews ◽  
Result Management ◽  
Governance Processes ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Test Result

IntroductionThe failure to follow-up pathology and medical imaging test results poses patient-safety risks which threaten the effectiveness, quality and safety of patient care. The objective of this project is to: (1) improve the effectiveness and safety of test-result management through the establishment of clear governance processes of communication, responsibility and accountability; (2) harness health information technology (IT) to inform and monitor test-result management; (3) enhance the contribution of consumers to the establishment of safe and effective test-result management systems.Methods and analysisThis convergent mixed-methods project triangulates three multistage studies at seven adult hospitals and one paediatric hospital in Australia.Study 1 adopts qualitative research approaches including semistructured interviews, focus groups and ethnographic observations to gain a better understanding of test-result communication and management practices in hospitals, and to identify patient-safety risks which require quality-improvement interventions.Study 2 analyses linked sets of routinely collected healthcare data to examine critical test-result thresholds and test-result notification processes. A controlled before-and-after study across three emergency departments will measure the impact of interventions (including the use of IT) developed to improve the safety and quality of test-result communication and management processes.Study 3 adopts a consumer-driven approach, including semistructured interviews, and the convening of consumer-reference groups and community forums. The qualitative data will identify mechanisms to enhance the role of consumers in test-management governance processes, and inform the direction of the research and the interpretation of findings.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval has been granted by the South Eastern Sydney Local Health District Human Research Ethics Committee and Macquarie University. Findings will be disseminated in academic, industry and consumer journals, newsletters and conferences.

Microparticles during long-term follow-up after acute myocardial infarction

2017 ◽  
Vol 117 (08) ◽  
pp. 1571-1581 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Christersson ◽  
Åsa Thulin ◽  
Agneta Siegbahn
Keyword(s):  
Myocardial Infarction ◽  
Acute Myocardial Infarction ◽  
Whole Blood ◽  
Cardiovascular Events ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Patients With Diabetes ◽  
Long Term Follow Up

SummaryMicroparticles (MPs) are formed from platelets (PMPs), endothelial cells (EMPs) and monocytes (MMPs), and in acute myocardial infarction (MI), there is an increase of MPs in the culprit artery. In this study MPs were evaluated in whole blood in 105 patients with MI at five time-points during a two-year follow-up (FU). Patients with non-ST-elevated MI had higher concentrations of CD41+MPs compared to ST-elevated MI patients (p=0.024). The concentrations of PMPs in whole blood increased during the time period (p<0.001), but no significant change over time was found for EMPs and MMPs. CD62P+MP counts were higher in MI patients with diabetes (p=0.020), and patients with hypertension had increased levels of CD14+MPs (p=0.004). The amount of CD62P+TF+MPs increased significantly during FU (p<0.001). Patients with atherosclerosis in three arterial beds, i. e. coronary, carotid and peripheral arteries, had lower concentrations of CD62P+TF+MPs (p=0.035) and CD144+TF+MPs (p=0.004) compared to patients with atherosclerosis in one or two arterial beds. Higher concentrations of CD62P+MPs early after MI were associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events during FU, hazard ratio 3.32 (95%CI1.20–9.31). Only small variations in PMP, EMP and MMP concentrations were found during long-term FU after MI and their levels seem to reflect the underlying cardiovascular disease rather than the acute MI. PMPs expressing P-selectin might be a promising biomarker for predicting future cardiovascular events, but further studies are needed to confirm these results.Supplementary Material to this article is available online at www.thrombosis-online.com.

scholarly journals Safe Practices for Copy and Paste in the EHR

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (01) ◽  
pp. 12-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy Tsou ◽  
Christoph Lehmann ◽  
Jeremy Michel ◽  
Ronni Solomon ◽  
Lorraine Possanza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Patient Safety ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Clinical Care ◽  
Diagnostic Errors ◽  
Practice Recommendations ◽  
Safety Risks ◽  
Missed Diagnosis ◽  
Expert Input ◽  
Copy And Paste ◽  
Safe Practices

SummaryBackground: Copy and paste functionality can support efficiency during clinical documentation, but may promote inaccurate documentation with risks for patient safety. The Partnership for Health IT Patient Safety was formed to gather data, conduct analysis, educate, and disseminate safe practices for safer care using health information technology (IT).Objective: To characterize copy and paste events in clinical care, identify safety risks, describe existing evidence, and develop implementable practice recommendations for safe reuse of information via copy and paste.Methods: The Partnership 1) reviewed 12 reported safety events, 2) solicited expert input, and3) performed a systematic literature review (2010 to January 2015) to identify publications addressing frequency, perceptions/attitudes, patient safety risks, existing guidance, and potential interventions and mitigation practices.Results: The literature review identified 51 publications that were included. Overall, 66% to 90% of clinicians routinely use copy and paste. One study of diagnostic errors found that copy and paste led to 2.6% of errors in which a missed diagnosis required patients to seek additional unplanned care. Copy and paste can promote note bloat, internal inconsistencies, error propagation, and documentation in the wrong patient chart. Existing guidance identified specific responsibilities for authors, organizations, and electronic health record (EHR) developers. Analysis of 12 reported copy and paste safety events was congruent with problems identified from the literature review. Conclusion: Despite regular copy and paste use, evidence regarding direct risk to patient safety remains sparse, with significant study limitations. Drawing on existing evidence, the Partnership developed four safe practice recommendations: 1) Provide a mechanism to make copy and paste material easily identifiable; 2) Ensure the provenance of copy and paste material is readily available; 3) Ensure adequate staff training and education; 4) Ensure copy and paste practices are regularly monitored, measured, and assessed.

Human Factors Research: A Ten Year Perspective

1983 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 84-84
Author(s):  
Kenneth W. Unger
Keyword(s):  
Human Factors ◽  
Data Base ◽  
Complete Understanding ◽  
Previous Time ◽  
Time Period ◽  
The Status ◽  
Human Factors Research

A more complete understanding of the status of human factors research may be gained by comparing current research with that performed during a previous time period. Using Human Factors as a data base, articles which were published during 1982 were compared with those published during 1972 on a variety of dimensions. The extent to which human factors research has changed during this time period is discussed.

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