COMMENT ‘‘Whatever happened to that ‘families first’ promise? Why we’re in favour of electronic health records

Likelihood of medication errors lower; X-rays and lab results done more quickly

Re: “Stop the Nanaimo healthrecords experiment,” comment, June 29. As the physicians responsible for implementing the electronic health record system at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital and Oceanside Health Centre, and who use it regularly in the care of our patients, we feel compelled to respond to this commentary.

Island Health’s IHealth initiative is anchored in an electronic health record, with the goal of having one record and one plan of care for Vancouver Island residents. Use of the Cerner-based EHR is not experimental; in fact, it is used in hospitals across the world, including many in Canada.

We disagree that a paper-based system offers “functionality, simplicity and reliability.” Such a system is prone to error, due to illegible handwriting, transcription mistakes and other manual processes such as faxing.

Medication errors are the leading cause of harm in hospitals. When using conventional paper systems, it is estimated that there is an average of one medication error per patient per day in hospitals. An electronic health record dramatically decreases the chance that a loved one will be harmed due to a medication error.

Since implementation of the EHR, there have been more than 2,000 computer alerts warning that a medication might be given to the wrong patient. In addition, there have been more than 3,600 alerts warning of potential drug interactions, and more than 6,000 allergy alerts — many of which resulted in a change to the physician’s order.

The evidence is overwhelming that it’s safer to get medications in a computerized environment where patients are not reliant on a physician’s handwriting to get the care they need and deserve.

The electronic health record is also resulting in faster care delivery. On average, antibiotics are being given nearly an hour faster, X-rays are being taken 102 minutes faster and lab results are being obtained nearly two hours quicker.

We acknowledge that the implementation of the EHR has not been easy or without error, and we agree that there is much work to be done.

Internal quality and safety reviews, an external review by Dr. Doug Cochrane — the provincial patient safety and quality officer — and reviews by peer experts all agree that use of the electronic health record should continue.

We look forward to continuing to improve the EHR at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital and Oceanside, and working with staff, physicians and patients across Island Health so that all residents receive better, faster and safer care. Dr. Drew Digney is executive medical director for Nanaimo, Oceanside, Alberni and Clayoquot for Island Health. Dr. Ben Williams is medical director for the Oceanside Community for Island Health.