Patient Safety: Innovation and Critical Thinking

To be sure, there are many factors that lead to delays in diagnosis. The reliance on advanced imaging, the lack of a simple physical examination, and the lack of critical thinking played prominently in the failure to make a diagnosis in my mom’s case. Some would argue that we need information technology (IT) systems that will allow us to better diagnose and treat patients. They believe that with electronic medical records (EMRs) data points will be entered and a diagnosis will be made. Major corporations like IBM and GE are working to make this a reality. Although Watson (the artificially intelligent computer system created by IBM) may be able to win on Jeopardy and may move the needle forward to improving patient care, 2 things are certain: (1) Appropriate data will need to be input by people, and (2) without critical thinking, the appropriate data can’t be entered or interpreted correctly. 

The fact remains that EMR has fallen short of expectations. We have more data at our fingertips but this has not translated into a significant improvement in patient safety. The human factor remains critical. Even though industry and health care workers strive to innovate and merge technological advances with improved patient outcomes, technology will continue to fall short of expectations without the input of critical thinking. There are things that computers and technological advances can do that people can’t, and there are things that people can do that computers can’t.

We cannot become a profession reliant on technology to substitute for critical thinking, and we cannot become a profession that doesn’t recognize what technology can bring to us and our patients. Like a railroad track that needs 2 parallel tracks to move trains, we must continue to build on 2 tracks: innovation and critical thinking. ◾