Tag: medical all-in-one pcs

How To Better Use Your Medical Grade Computer

How To Prevent Critical Electronic Health Records Mistakes

Michelle

There’s no doubt that medical grade computers have made hospitals safer, more productive environments to treat patients. From their antimicrobial coating which mitigates the growth of nosocomial infection causing bacteria to their robust IP certified water resistance, medical grade computers have made a lasting impact on the quality of care provided to patients.

 

Sadly, the same cannot always be said about the software running on these devices. The misuse of medical software such as Electronic Health Records (EHR) can lead to shockingly wrong results. While neither the fault of the software or medical grade computer, mishaps by untrained medical staff using such tools can lead to dangerous outcomes. Here are a few tips to help medical staff prevent errors while using software on their medical grade computers.

 

Be Aware Of Default Settings On Your Electronic Health Record Program

Every EHR program running on a medical grade computer is different, but many have the same features. One similarity that goes unnoticed is their use of default settings and inputs for entry fields. Just like how a website may have a random date filled in for your birthday when signing up, some EHR programs have default numbers filled in for various entry fields. A default drug measurement setting may be present on your EHR program, either by the software provider or your IT department. Make sure that both you and your medical staff are aware of this , as it is entirely possible that they assume the default measurement is correct, and accidentally mis-prescribe a patient.

 

In addition, an unclear medication list present on your EHR program can similarly lead to mis-prescriptions. Medication lists that are hard to read, uninformative, or lack dosing information can lead to medical staff assuming that they are prescribing the correct dosage while in fact doing the opposite. 

 

Train Your Medical Staff Rigorously

EHR programs running on medical grade computers are meant to aid physicians and medical staff, not harm them. While there are problems with these programs, they come from a lack of knowledge and training surrounding the programs. Educate your staff on the presence of default drug measurements, and have your IT department update the default setting to a nonviable integer (such as 0) if possible. Creating a detailed medication list that is both informative and easy to read can also greatly improve EHR usability on medical grade computers. Above all, make sure your staff is regularly refreshed on how to use their EHR program and medical grade computer to their full potential.

 

Avoid Critical Mistakes

Mistakes in the hospital carry consequences not seen in any other sector, and should be avoided at all costs. Making sure that your medical staff is trained to the fullest extent on the use of EHR programs is crucial to providing quality care to patients. Medical technology has always been a force for good, and it is important to treat EHR programs as the medical tools that they are.

antimicrobial medical computers

Preventing Nosocomial Infections

Michelle

What Is a Nosocomial Infection?

Infections occurring while a person is being treated in a hospital are considered nosocomial infections. Nosocomial infections are of great concern to hospitals, governments, and medical personnel alike as they can have a vast impact on the quality of healthcare provided. Infections such as Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Clostridium difficile are common Nosocomial infections which are bolstered by increasing antibiotic resistance. Curbing the spread of nosocomial infections is critical to not only providing safe patient care, but halting the growth of superbug bacteria.

 

What Can Be Done?

While the prospect of antibiotic resistant superbugs seems bleak, it is not too late to make changes in your hospital to better combat the growth of such bacteria. One such way is replacing surfaces in your hospital that are prone to bacteria growth with antimicrobial surfaces. An antimicrobial surface is a surface that either naturally or artificially inhibits the growth of bacteria on its surface. A study published by the United Kingdom government found, “Antimicrobial coatings represent innovation in response to an impending healthcare challenge that is unprecedented.”

 

Without a doubt, some of the surfaces most prone to bacteria build up are the ones you are interacting with right now to read this article. Medical tablets, PCs, and Monitors are incredibly susceptible to bacteria growth. Devices like medical tablets can be expected to be used by multiple medical staff throughout the day, each interacting with patients throughout the day. This can lead to multiple bacteria strains occupying the screen, mouse, and keyboard of your medical devices. 

 

Luckily, antimicrobial surfaces have found their way into the production of medical equipment, and today most medical tablets and PCs feature antimicrobial enclosures. These enclosures ensure that medical tablets can be exchanged by medical staff throughout the day without the worry of infection spread. The screens on both medical tablets and medical all-in-one PCs are also IP rated to be water resistant, allowing them to be regularly cleaned. 

 

Antimicrobial Surfaces: The Right Choice

Whether it’s a medical tablet being passed around from nurse to nurse, or a medical all-in-one PC being used by a single doctor: making sure that your hospitals devices have antimicrobial surfaces is crucial to reducing the spread of nosocomial infections.

Medical Computers Redundancy

Preparing Your Hospital For Hurricanes And Other Natural Disasters

Michelle

While we tend not to think of worst case scenarios, it is important that we are prepared for them. Natural disasters are inherently unpredictable, and it is up to individuals and organizations to be prepared when disaster strikes. Unfortunately, we may not be as prepared as we would like to think. According to the National Health Security Preparedness Index, which measures health protections from numerous sources, the United States is not as adequately prepared for wide scale health emergencies as we should be. The Index rates the United States at a 6.7 out of 10, and while this score has increased from previous years, the rate at which it is growing is slowing. Worse, healthcare delivery was rated at a mere 4.9 out of 10. 

 

What Can Be Done?

In emergency situations, hospitals must be fully prepared to render aid to any and all affected. After all, communities cannot rebuild and return to normalcy when the populace is isn’t healthy. Ensuring that your hospital is ready for natural disasters is crucial to your community’s peace of mind. It is vital that doctors, nurses, and medical staff are able to be relied on in times of crisis, as their services are crucial to preventing natural disasters from turning into health crises. A recent study by American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) surveyed a group of 247 doctors and found that 93 percent believed their hospitals were not fully prepared to deal with large patient influxes due to disasters. Making sure that your medical personnel have the right equipment to handle large patient influxes such as those occurring in natural disasters is just as important.

 

Choosing The Right Equipment.

Disaster can strike at any time, and while hurricanes can be tracked, they cannot be stopped. It’s a fact that America’s power infrastructure is decaying, and relying on traditional wall outlets in an emergency could lead to serious medical consequences. Making sure your medical equipment can operate for extended periods without relying on the power grid is crucial to making sure your hospital is prepared for disasters.

 

Traditional desktop computers rely on external uninterrupted power supplies (UPS) for emergency power. These are fine, but require floor space and IT monitoring and setup, and cannot be moved in an emergency. Medical all-in-one PCs are touchscreen enabled computers that can feature hot-swap battery technology, allowing them to act as their own UPS. Tangent’s lineup of medical all-in-one PCs features PCs that are capable of running off battery power without being plugged into walls. This allows them to be mobile computers, going wherever they are needed. Medical Tablets are also battery operated, and just as capable as traditional computers. Medical Tablets can serve as on-the-go medical PCs in disaster scenarios, allowing doctors to treat and track numerous patients at a time. In search and rescue operations, medical tablets are portable enough to serve first responders without inhibiting their mission. Having medical tablets on standby is just one way to prepare your hospital for natural disasters.

 

Serving The Community.

A hospitals priority should be to serve the public’s health everyday, including days when disaster is unfolding. Allocating Medical all-in-one PCs and medical tablets are just two of the ways that your hospital can better prepare itself for the inevitable.