A Culture of Safety

"Many of our patients, especially our older patients, are on multiple medications, and there’s always the potential to harm somebody by not being aware of drug interactions."
- Jandel Allen-Davis, M.D.

Dr. Jandel Allen-Davis puts the safety of her patients at the top of her priority list every day. With a system of electronic medical records (EMRs) and e-prescribing, Dr. Allen-Davis has the information needed to provide the best care possible.

While the integrated healthcare delivery system she works with is almost completely integrated inside its own walls, its systems cannot communicate with the systems of other hospitals. Still, for the average patient, Dr. Allen-Davis and others are able to help their patients find better and safer treatment options and be more involved in their overall health. "One of the biggest bangs for the safety buck is when I order medications. When I enter a certain disease into the computer, it automatically gives me all the possible treatments and the correct dosage for my patients. This is a tremendous tool, especially when I have patients with diseases I’m not as familiar with."

"Instead of sending them to another doctor or calling someone to get their opinion about what medicine would work best, all the most recent and accurate information about all of these drugs is right there, in the medical record. In a given department or with a clinical situation, we look at what would be the best way to use the system to keep patients safe, to alert doctors to anything new that might be going on or new warnings for medications. Many of our patients, especially our older patients, are on multiple medications, and there’s always the potential to harm somebody by not being aware of drug interactions."

But safety is not the only benefit. Dr. Allen-Davis frequently uses the system to help connect her patients with other doctors and the treatment they need, especially for those with chronic diseases. "Last week I had a patient whose labs came back and showed that her blood sugar was elevated. I was able to call her, let her know that based on the information, it looks like she’s developed diabetes. I then ordered the appropriate follow-up lab work and told her to 'make sure you call your primary doctor.' But with the EMR, I was also able to say, 'I’m going to send a copy of this note to your primary doctor, so that she can be involved in your care right away.' Her primary doctor called her to make sure she came in, and we got her connected into the right programs of diabetic counseling and nutrition teaching. I think those little nudges begin to change the culture of safety for patients."