Is Your Staff Trained to Use the Latest Medical Technology?

Is Your Staff Trained to Use the Latest Medical Technology?Patient safety issues can arise if doctors implement a new technology without adequate analysis of how their staff will interact with the new devices. It is not a new medical device that is problematic always but how the new technology is understood by the staff, tested and integrated in the process of care-delivery.

Productivity demands have increased and physicians, nurses and other clinical staff are being forced to work faster. With so much to handle in a limited time span, implementation of a new technology becomes a challenging task for practices.

According to recent studies, adverse patient events can occur if a practice fails to integrate new medical technology, EHR or patient monitoring devices successfully into the workflow. It is extremely important to understand a device to ensure the right processes. For instance, in 2011, the clinical staff at one of the hospitals near Washington D.C. misunderstood a pop-up box on a digital blood sugar reader. Due to the misunderstanding, a low blood sugar patient was mistakenly given insulin which caused her to go into a diabetic coma. This error was caused due to a minor customization to the glucometer.

A cascade of equipment and gadgets are raining down on the US healthcare system. Physicians are investing in new technology to enhance the level of patient care; however, lack of time and training is leading to wrong use of those devices, causing trouble to patients. This is one of the reasons due to which many providers are outsourcing their billing requirements to a medical billing company. By seeking assistance from companies like MedicalBillersandCoders.com, physicians are buying time for themselves and their staff to focus on patient care and ensure correct usage of medical devices.

Companies like MedicalBillersandCoders.com have a team of certified and well-trained coders and billers who are experts at maximizing revenue and minimizing the claims denials. The team at MBC currently serves practices across 50 states in the US, helping physicians strengthen their revenue cycle and concentrate on patient care.

Human-factor Research – How Does it Help?

Many hospitals are establishing human-factor research teams in order to determine how the staff is going to react with new technology in real-life situations and under high-pressure. According to medical experts, problems occur due to the interface of humans with the technology. By establishing such teams, hospitals are investigating what could go wrong when a new medical device or tool is deployed. It is also helping them find out effective ways to reduce any threat to the safety of patients with the wrong use of devices.

Experts are of the view that there is a strong need to analyze events related to patient safety and integration of technology. For instance, it was reported by the researchers in Houston that patient safety can be at risk if the EHR being used by a medical practice is confusing as well as complicated. Since the complexity of a technology is not the problem, efforts are required to train the staff on how to use the systems.

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