While health technology advances provide new ways to improve patient care, some may also create new opportunities for harm. To help minimize the risk of technology-related adverse events, the ECRI Institute, an independent nonprofit that researches the best approaches to improving patient care, has released its Top 10 Health Technology Hazards list for 2013. The list is intended to raise awareness of potential dangers associated with the use of medical devices and systems.
Five of the top 10 hazards in the report are:
- Alarm hazards
- Medication administration errors using infusion pumps
- Unnecessary radiation exposures and burns during diagnostic radiology procedures
- Patient/data mismatches in EHRs and other health IT systems
- Interoperability failures with medical devices and health IT systems
Here are the last five:
- Air embolism hazards
- Inattention to the needs of pediatric patients when using "adult" techniques
- Inadequate reprocessing of endoscopic devices and surgical instruments
- Caregiver distractions from smartphones and other mobile devices
- Surgical fires
The list is updated each year based upon the prevalence and severity of incidents reported to ECRI Institute by healthcare facilities nationwide; information found in the Institute’s medical device problem reporting databases; and the judgment, analysis, and expertise of the organization’s multidisciplinary staff. The report is available as a free download with registration.
