Browse through all publications from the Institute of Global Health Innovation, which our Patient Safety Research Collaboration is part of. This feed includes reports and research papers from our Centre.
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Journal articleBell H, Garfield S, Khosla S, et al., 2019,
Mixed methods study of medication-related decision support alerts experienced during electronic prescribing for inpatients at an English hospital
, European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy: Science and Practice, Vol: 26, Pages: 318-322, ISSN: 2047-9956Objectives Electronic prescribing and medication administration systems are being introduced in many hospitals worldwide, with varying degrees of clinical decision support including pop-up alerts. Previous research suggests that prescribers override a high proportion of alerts, but little research has been carried out in the UK. Our objective was to explore rates of alert overriding in different prescribing situations and prescribers’ perceptions around the use of decision support alerts in a UK hospital.Methods We conducted a mixed methods study on three cardiology wards, directly observing medical and non-medical prescribers’ alert override rates during both ward round and non-ward round prescribing; observations were followed by semi-structured interviews with prescribers, which were then transcribed and analysed thematically.Results Overall, 69% of 199 observed alerts were overridden. Alerts experienced during ward rounds were significantly more likely to be overridden than those outside of ward rounds (80% of 56 vs 51% of 63; p=0.001, Χ2 test). While respondents acknowledged that alerts could be useful, several also described negative unintended consequences. Many were of the view that usefulness of alerts was limited if the alert was reminding them to do something they would do anyway, or suggesting something they did not feel was relevant. Findings suggest that targeting, timing and additional features of alerts are critical factors in determining whether they are acted on or overridden.Conclusion The majority of alerts were overridden. Alerts may be less likely to be overridden if they are built into the prescribing workflow.
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Journal articleArhi CS, Ziprin P, Bottle A, et al., 2019,
Colorectal cancer patients under the age of 50 experience delays in primary care leading to emergency diagnoses: a population-based study
, Colorectal Disease, Vol: 21, Pages: 1270-1278, ISSN: 1462-8910AIM: The incidence of colorectal cancer in the under 50s is increasing. In this national population-based study we aim to show that missed opportunities for diagnosis in primary care are leading to referral delays and emergency diagnoses in young patients. METHOD: We compared the interval before diagnosis, presenting symptom(s) and the odds ratio (OR) of an emergency diagnosis for those under the age of 50 with older patients sourced from the cancer registry with linkage to a national database of primary-care records. RESULTS: The study included 7315 patients, of whom 508 (6.9%) were aged under 50 years, 1168 (16.0%) were aged 50-59, 2294 (31.4%) were aged 60-69 and 3345 (45.7%) were aged 70-79 years. Young patients were more likely to present with abdominal pain and via an emergency, and had the lowest percentage of early stage cancer. They experienced a longer interval between referral and diagnosis (12.5 days) than those aged 60-69, reflecting the higher proportion of referrals via the nonurgent pathway (33.3%). The OR of an emergency diagnosis did not differ with age if a red-flag symptom was noted at presentation, but increased significantly for young patients if the symptom was nonspecific. CONCLUSION: Young patients present to primary care with symptoms outside the national referral guidelines, increasing the likelihood of an emergency diagnosis.
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Journal articleMohsin-Shaikh S, Furniss D, Blandford A, et al., 2019,
The impact of electronic prescribing systems on healthcare professionals' working practices in the hospital setting: a systematic review and narrative synthesis
, BMC Health Services Research, Vol: 19, Pages: 1-8, ISSN: 1472-6963BackgroundThe aim of this systematic review was to synthesise peer-reviewed literature assessing the impact of electronic prescribing (eP) systems on the working practices of healthcare professionals (HCPs) in the inpatient setting and identify implications for practice and research.MethodsWe searched PubMed, Medline, Embase, Cochrane and the Cumulative Index to Nursing Allied Health Literature databases for studies published from inception to November 2018. We included controlled, uncontrolled, observational and descriptive studies that explored the effect of eP on HCPs’ working practices in an inpatient setting. Data on setting, eP system and impact on working practices were extracted. Methodological quality was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Emergent themes were identified and subjected to narrative synthesis. The protocol was registered with PROSPERO (registration CRD42017075804).ResultsSearches identified 1301 titles and abstracts after duplicate removal. 171 papers underwent full-text review. A total of 25 studies met the inclusion criteria, from nine different countries. Nineteen were of commercial eP systems. There were a range of study designs; most (n = 14) adopted quantitative methods such as cross-sectional surveys, ten adopted qualitative approaches and a further one used mixed methods. Fourteen of the 25 studies were deemed to be of high quality. Four key themes were identified: communication, time taken to complete tasks, clinical workflow, and workarounds. Within each theme, study findings differed as to whether the effects of eP on HCPs’ working practices were positive or negative.ConclusionThere is a lack of consensus within the literature on the impact of eP on HCPs’ working practices. Future research should explore the strategies resulting in a positive impact on HCPs’ working practices and learn from those that have not been successful.
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Journal articleGhafur S, Kristensen S, honeyford K, et al., 2019,
A retrospective impact analysis of the WannaCry cyber-attack on the NHS
, npj Digital Medicine, Vol: 2, ISSN: 2398-6352A systematic analysis of Hospital Episodes Statistics (HES) data was done to determine the effects of the 2017 WannaCry attack on the National Health Service (NHS) by identifying the missed appointments, deaths, and fiscal costs attributable to the ransomware attack. The main outcomes measured were: outpatient appointments cancelled, elective and emergency admissions to hospitals, Accident & Emergency (A&E) attendances, and deaths in A&E. Compared with the baseline, there was no significant difference in the total activity across all trusts during the week of the WannaCry attack. Trusts had 1% more emergency admissions and 1% fewer A&E attendances per day during the WannaCry week compared with baseline. Hospitals directly infected with the ransomware, however, had significantly fewer emergency and elective admissions: a decrease of about 6% in total admissions per infected hospital per day was observed, with 4% fewer emergency admissions and 9% fewer elective admissions. No difference in mortality was noted. The total economic value of the lower activity at the infected trusts during this time was £5.9m including £4m in lost inpatient admissions, £0.6m from lost A&E activity, and £1.3m from cancelled outpatient appointments. Among hospitals infected with WannaCry ransomware, there was a significant decrease in the number of attendances and admissions, which corresponded to £5.9m in lost hospital activity. There was no increase in mortality reported, though this is a crude measure of patient harm. Further work is needed to appreciate the impact of a a cyber attack or IT failure on care delivery and patient safety.
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Journal articleArhi CS, Markar S, Burns EM, et al., 2019,
Delays in referral from primary care are associated with a worse survival in patients with esophagogastric cancer
, Diseases of the Esophagus, Vol: 32, Pages: 1-11, ISSN: 1120-8694NICE referral guidelines for suspected cancer were introduced to improve prognosis by reducing referral delays. However, over 20% of patients with esophagogastric cancer experience three or more consultations before referral. In this retrospective cohort study, we hypothesize that such a delay is associated with a worse survival compared with patients referred earlier. By utilizing Clinical Practice Research Datalink, a national primary care linked database, the first presentation, referral date, a number of consultations before referral and stage for esophagogastric cancer patients were determined. The risk of a referral after one or two consultations compared with three or more consultations was calculated for age and the presence of symptom fulfilling the NICE criteria. The risk of death according to the number of consultations before referral was determined, while accounting for stage and surgical management. 1307 patients were included. Patients referred after one (HR 0.80 95% CI 0.68-0.93 p = 0.005) or two consultations (HR 0.81 95% CI 0.67-0.98 p = 0.034) demonstrated significantly improved prognosis compared with those referred later. The risk of death was also lower for patients who underwent a resection, were younger or had an earlier stage at diagnosis. Those presenting with a symptom fulfilling the NICE criteria (OR 0.27 95% CI 0.21-0.35 p < 0.0001) were more likely to be referred earlier. This is the first study to demonstrate an association between a delay in referral and worse prognosis in esophagogastric patients. These findings should prompt further research to reduce primary care delays.
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Journal articleFurniss D, Mayer A, Franklin BD, et al., 2019,
Exploring structure, agency and performance variability in everyday safety: An ethnographic study of practices around infusion devices using distributed cognition
, SAFETY SCIENCE, Vol: 118, Pages: 687-701, ISSN: 0925-7535- Author Web Link
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- Citations: 10
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Journal articleBlandford A, Dykes PC, Franklin BD, et al., 2019,
Intravenous Infusion Administration: A Comparative Study of Practices and Errors Between the United States and England and Their Implications for Patient Safety
, DRUG SAFETY, Vol: 42, Pages: 1157-1165, ISSN: 0114-5916- Author Web Link
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- Citations: 13
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Journal articleFernandes Neves Soares AL, Poovendran D, Freise L, et al., 2019,
Healthcare professionals’ perspectives on the secondary use of health records to improve quality and safety of care: a qualitative study in England
, Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol: 21, ISSN: 1438-8871Background: Healthcare professionals (HCP) are often patients’ first point of contact in what concerns the communication of the purposes, benefits, and risks of sharing electronic health records (EHR) for non-direct care purposes. Their engagement is fundamental to ensure patients’ buy-in and a successful implementation of healthcare data sharing schemes. However, their views on this subject are seldom evaluated. Objective: To explore HCP’ perspectives on the secondary uses of healthcare data in England. Specifically, we aimed to assess a) their knowledge on its purposes and b) the main concerns about data sharing processes.Methods: A total of 30 interviews were conducted between the 27th March and 7th April 2017 using an online interview platform, and following a topic guide with open-ended questions. The participants represented a variety of geographic locations across England (London, West Midlands, East of England, North East, Yorkshire and the Humber), covering both primary and secondary care services. The transcripts were compiled verbatim and systematically reviewed by two independent reviewers, using the framework analysis method to identify emerging themes.Results: HCP were knowledgeable about the possible secondary uses of data and highlighted its importance for 1) patient profiling and tailored care, 2) research, 3) quality assurance, 4) public health, and 5) service delivery planning purposes. Main concerns towards data sharing included 1) data accuracy, 2) patients’ willingness to share their records, 3) challenges on obtaining free and informed consent, 4) data security, 5) lack of adequacy / understanding of current policies, and 6) potential patient exposure and exploitation.Conclusions: These results suggest a high level of HCP understanding about the purposes of data sharing for secondary purposes, however, some concerns still remain. A better understanding of HCP’ knowledge and concerns could inform national communica
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Journal articleFontana G, Flott K, Dhingra-Kumar N, et al., 2019,
Five reasons for optimism on World Patient Safety Day
, The Lancet, Vol: 394, Pages: 993-995, ISSN: 0140-6736 -
Journal articleSymons J, Ashrafian H, Dunscombe R, et al., 2019,
From EHR to PHR: Let’s get the UK record straight
, BMJ Open, Vol: 9, Pages: 1-5, ISSN: 2044-6055This article reflects on the changing nature of health information access and the transition of focus from electronic health records (EHRs) to personal health records (PHRs) along with the challenges and need for alignment of national initiatives for EHR and PHR in the National Health Service (NHS) of the United Kingdom (UK).The importance of implementing integrated EHRs as a route to enhance the quality of health delivery has been increasingly understood. EHRs however carry several limitations that include major fragmentation through multiple providers and protocols throughout the NHS. Questions over ownership and control of data further complicate the potential for fully utilising records. Analysing the previous initiatives and the current landscape, we identify that adopting a patient health record system can empower patients and allow better harmonisation of clinical data at a national level. We propose regional PHR “hubs” to provide a universal interface that integrates digital heath data at a regional level with further integration at a national level.We propose that these PHR “hubs” will reduce the complexity of connections, decrease governance challenges and interoperability issues while also providing a safe platform for high-quality scalable and sustainable digital solutions, including artificial intelligence (AI) across the UK NHS, serving as an exemplar for other countries which wish to realise the full value of healthcare records.
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