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Thomson Puts Critical Data in Physicians Hands |
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In addition to having a stethoscope around their necks, doctors often hold a handheld in hand nowadays. Several companies offer solutions that allow healthcare professionals to carry reams of drug and disease data with them at all times. A company you can now add to that list is clinical and management decision support vendor Thomson with its new Clinical Xpert for PDAs application.
The software, for Palm OS and Pocket PC handhelds, is a medical reference and decision-support tool with drug, disease and laboratory information. Its stated purpose: to reduce the chance of medial errors, which, according to the Institute of Medicine, effect 1.5 million patients per year, by addressing quality and safety issues such as drug interactions.
Thomson Clinical Xpert for PDAs includes a searchable database of more than 4,000 drugs with indications; dosage and interactions information; details and interpretations of more than 400 lab tests; toxicology reports on over 200 of the most common poisons and drug overdoses; a disease database that offers differential diagnoses, therapeutics and evidence-based recommendation ratings; and info about alternative medicines.
Advisories regarding key drug changes or treatment studies are delivered directly to users PDA, desktop or PDR.net account.
"We know that clinicians are committed to eliminating errors and ensuring the most effective care for their patients," said Thompson chief clinical informatics officer Dr. Jerry Osheroff. "Thomson Clinical Xpert improves point-of-care access to consistent, authoritative medical knowledge for all those who play a direct role in patient care, reducing the risk of medical errors. The ultimate beneficiary is, of course, the patient."
Thomson Clinical Xpert for PDAs is free to members and subscribers of Thompson's various services. Otherwise, it goes for $99.95
According to Thomson, a recent study revealed 87 percent of physician respondents reported using PDAs, with up to 50 percent frequently referring to PDA-stored clinical information.
The National Academy of Science - Institute of Medicine estimated in 2004 that mistakes cost the healthcare system more than $2 billion annually, with over $100 million coming from preventable drug errors alone. Treatment prescribed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services included increased use of information technology, such as handhelds, as among the most cost effective ways to improve patient care and reduce medical errors.
A survey of 1,600 physicians by Skyscape that same year corroborated these findings. Questioned doctors said PDAs reduce errors by more than 4 percent, with 92 percent of them asserting handhelds improve efficiency. Among internists, 24 percent indicated they reduce their medical errors by over 10 percent, while an additional 41 percent achieved a lesser, but still impressive, 6 percent reduction.
Another survey, this one of emergency room physicians by insurer MedAmerica Mutual told a similar story. 65 percent of respondents said PDAs helped them avoid a dosing error, 58 percent a dosing frequency error, 25 percent a drug error, 24 percent a therapeutic error, and 18 percent other types of errors.
66 percent of respondents used their PDA to look up information and perform medical calculations on every shift, with an additional 15 percent using their devices on more than half of their shifts. When asked to describe how the devices was used in their clinical practice, 93 percent said as a drug reference, 56 percent a medical calculator, and 38 percent a medical reference.
Submitted Date: Dec 06, 2006
Source: PDAstreet
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