90% of all doctors, hospitals, and medical professionals now use electronic health records (EHRs). While it would appear that such technologies would increase medical professionals' efficiency, convenience, and awareness of patient history, the number of lawsuits involving EHRs has tripled in the last eight years.
Flaws in the design. EHRs frequently have technological or design flaws because technology is not perfect. Sometimes EHR vendors will include clauses that release them from any liability; they will try to place the entire liability for any medical malpractice on physicians and medical professionals.
Inaccurate information. If a doctor relies on incorrect or outdated information, they may make a wrong diagnosis or prescribe an ineffective medication. On the other hand, medical software can only be as good as the information stored within it. Some voice-recognition software, for example, transcribes information ineffectively.
Copy and paste. Doctors or nurses may inadvertently copy and paste information from the previous patient visit into the patient's EHR, failing to account for the possibility that some information has changed since the last appointment. While similar errors can occur in the absence of EHRs, the ease of copy-paste may increase their likelihood.
Auto-populate. The medical fields of a patient may already be filled out, similar to the copy-and-paste error. Medical history, physical, and procedure notes could be auto-populated from previous notes or a template. In these cases, the auto-population may be incorrect because it is not based on the most recent medical information.
When electronic medical records are incorrect, patients can suffer serious harm. If your doctor or hospital injured you, you might have a strong medical malpractice claim. Please call us at 212-736-0979 to schedule a free legal consultation.
Source: Why do electronic medical records fuel medical malpractice?
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Jonathan C. Reiter Law Firm, PLLC
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