Real-time EHR monitoring yields strong, actionable data on health care safety (Betsy Lehman Center, 21 September 2023)

Summary

This article published by the Betsy Lehman Center looks at the benefits of real-time monitoring of electronic health records (EHRs). Early adopter hospitals have demonstrated dramatic gains in safety by monitoring patients' EHR's in real time for signals of potential safety events, allowing providers to more quickly and effectively address safety gaps and improve outcomes. This monitoring is carried out by automated safety surveillance software that continuously runs in the background of EHR systems and can detect hundreds of categories of adverse events as they occur. Expert analysis then quickly helps organisations gain insight from the data, which can be used to proactively reduce safety risks and reliably measure incidence of harm over time.