Patients Fare Better In Hospitals Using Info Technology

Study says pretty much the obvious...better records and information...better care...paper is not cutting it today with the extra amount of time required to dig through and get the needed information...check your hospital and see what level of information technology is being use...it will vary from some who are completely automated to those who barely have anything at all and usually that will be a hint of technology in the administrative area with all patient charting still using old paper folders...BD

Patients are more likely to have better health outcomes if they are treated at hospitals using information technology (IT) systems, according to a comprehensive new Florida State University study.
The study compared overall IT adoption with patient discharge data at 98 hospitals across Florida, providing the most comprehensive analysis to date of the relationship between information technology use and health outcomes. The study appears in the November/December issue of the Journal of Healthcare Management.
Such conditions can be prevented when clinicians have up-to-date patient information, standardized medical order sets and evidence-based guidelines on best treatment procedures. Menachemi found that hospitals properly using IT networks are best able to ensure that clinicians receive critical information at the point of care to assist physicians in adhering to proven clinical guidelines.

The study examined three categories of IT use that affect various aspects of hospital operations: administrative, clinical and strategic. Administrative operations included those IT systems used in billing, payroll and supply chain management. Clinical operations included pharmacy and laboratory, computerized physician order entry and electronic health records. Strategic operations involved systems used for managed care, nurse staffing and executive information.