EMR implementation to improve patient outcomes

Florida International University

The problem
Quality of care has been low for Mesey hospital over the past few years. Medical errors, near misses and poor patient safety are at an increased rate. Communication has been lack luster, and patient satisfaction surveys have yielded unsatisfactory results. Mesey has invested in quality training, has had continuous education sessions and in-services in an attempt to improve care but has seen no improvements despite the efforts. The CEO, not realizing that it’s the system not the people, is looking into new and different strategies for improvement, including hiring new employees as the current staff is set in their ways and cannot seem to turn quality around. Mesey is currently using the traditional paper charting system and has not yet converted to electronic medical records (EMR). The CEO has done some research and has learned that the competitor Wellness hospital has been using EMR for over two years and has had great success - high quality rating and excellent patient satisfaction scores. The CEO of Mesey has been contemplating if implementing EMR within the facility will improve patient outcomes and satisfaction through improved safety and quality of care?
Traditionally, paper based medical records have been used due to its simplicity and ease of use, low cost implementation, and widespread acceptance. This system does however come with a vast number of disadvantages including one person at a time use, illegibility issues, inability to access remotely and charts may become thick at times requiring chart thinning which can result in loss of parts of the medical records (Bates, Ebell, Gotlieb, et al. 2003). However, many injuries including medication errors, falls, and infections occur during hospitalization. Estimates have suggested that 1.3 million injuries may