The emergence of data-driven patient safety
Keeping patients safe is intrinsic to the work of healthcare professionals. It is at the core of all that the healthcare community strives to achieve, but unfortunately, modern medicine still sometimes falls short. There are identified gaps in the way patient information is recorded, with fragmented and “siloed” information. But, thankfully, as technology plays an ever-increasing role in healthcare, it is helping to keep patients safe.
According to Dr Rahul Goyal, Senior Vice President of Clinical Engagement, Malaffi, as data-driven patient safety emerges, there is access to better tools, to achieve better patient outcomes.
He said: “As demonstrated globally, Health Information Exchange (HIE) platforms allow healthcare professionals to safely and securely share a patient’s most important medical information, digitally. The technology allows us, as care providers, to securely share information in a way that was not possible before. The introduction of Malaffi is a strategic effort by the Department of Health Abu Dhabi towards a digital transformation of the healthcare ecosystem and is helping to further improve the quality of healthcare services and ensure patients’ safety.
"Knowledge really is power and by filling in inconsistencies in information, I can make better-informed decisions, which ultimately puts safety first.”
It is thought that up to 18 per cent of patient safety errors and as many as 70 per cent of adverse drug reactions could be eliminated if the right information, about the right patient, was made available.
With the use of HIEs, this is possible. It also prevents unnecessary and repetitive diagnostic tests by presenting relevant recent results to all clinicians involved in patient care, hence reducing the exposure to radiation (scans etc.) and other invasive procedures.
HIEs empower both the patient and the provider. Patients can be confident that the most informed decisions are being made about their care, based on accurate information from their individual health journey and avoid preventable errors.
“I have had patients say ‘Dr, I’ve seen my endocrinologist, you must have the results. Tell me what’s next. This is a fantastic attitude for patients to have,” said Dr Goyal. “This transparency makes sure we both invest in their safety, right from the start.
"As a doctor, I often got a very fragmented view of a patient care summary. There are gaps and grey areas. But HIEs provide a credible, holistic view, in an organised format.
"They give a comprehensive picture of my patient’s history, even if they have been seen outside of my network. By filling the gaps, it gives us detailed information on critical information, and this helps ensure safety is at the forefront of all my clinical practice.”
Another big technology trend that saw wide adoption due to the pandemic was Telemedicine. It is a big new market that can greatly help in diagnosing medical conditions as well as treating mental health, as there is an acute shortage of mental health workers globally, said Dr Nash.
“During the pandemic, there was a real exponential increase in people accessing telehealth. It is a big business now, which was pretty sleepy before the pandemic.
"The impact of AI on patient safety has also come into the spotlight as it helps in reducing the burden of healthcare professionals by managing patient flow. It supports an early response to the pandemic by enabling efficient patient monitoring, screening and decision-making for the prevention of large-scale community spread."
Dr Samer Ellahham, Regional Chair, Middle East Patient Safety Movement Foundation; Director, Accreditation; Cardiology Consultant, Cleveland Clinic Care Giver, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, explained that AI’s practicable algorithms provide updated information to all individuals about positive cases in their vicinity as well as probable sites of infection and virus influx around. A clear description of cases helps in local awareness, health education and information allowing individuals to take necessary precautionary methods.
He added that well-trained AI models are also useful in providing insights into the disease and drug treatment, which are not yet understood by practitioners. A useful discovery made with the help of deep learning algorithms is that patients may continue to spread the disease even after their efficient recovery because diagnostic tests were found to be positive 5-13 days after treatment.
The use of AI helps in enhancing patient safety due to the early identification of complications and their logical management. He cautioned that a limitation includes the lack of clinical trials demonstrating the safety of the use of AI in COVID-19 positive cases. This limits its use in diagnostic and treatment-related roles.
For Kathryn K. Leonhardt, MD, MPH, CPPS, CPHQ, Joint Commission International Principal Consultant, International Quality & Patient Safety, Wisconsin, U.S, with the digital transformation we are all experiencing through the expansion of technology, the next generation of quality – Quality 4.0 – has arrived for healthcare, as it has for other industries. COVID-19 has reinforced the criticality of quality and the need to incorporate technology, including the use of available data sources and advanced analytics.
The literature on Quality 4.0 focuses on understanding and managing context when approaching a problem: leadership, culture, diversity, adoption and implementation. The quality professional needs both technical skills as well as the ‘soft’ skills of change management, communication and teamwork.