Study: EHR malpractice claims rising
Malpractice claims involving the use of electronic health records (EHRs) are on the rise, according to data from The Doctors Company.
Cases in which EHRs were a factor grew from 2 claims during 2007-2010 to 161 claims from 2011 to December 2016, according an analysis published Oct. 16 by The Doctors Company, a national medical malpractice insurer.
The majority of EHR-related claims during 2014-2016 stemmed from incidents in a doctor’s office or a hospital clinic (35%), while the second most common location was a patient’s room. Malpractice claims involving EHRs were most commonly alleged against ob.gyns, followed by family physicians, and orthopedists. Diagnosis errors and improper medication management were the top most frequent allegations associated with EHR claims.
The analysis shows that while digitization of medicine has improved patient safety, it also has a dark side – as evidenced by the emergence of new kinds of errors, said Robert M. Wachter, MD, a professor at the University of California, San Francisco, and a member of the board of governors for The Doctors Company.
“This study makes an important contribution by chronicling actual errors, such as wrong medications selected from an autopick list, and helps point the way to changes ranging from physician education to EHR software design,” Dr. Wachter said in a statement.
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