How EMR is helping to improve patient safety

Updated on November 22, 2021

The world of medicine is consistently evolving, with technological advances helping to constantly improve patient care and treatment. Some of this can come down to different medications being perfected, which can improve the quality of life for a patient with long-term health issues, while even improvements to how medical records have major benefits when it comes to treating people. 

It streamlines medical records

As a starting point, the idea behind EMR (electronic medical records) means it is meant to be an easier and more streamlined service to ensure patients receive the treatment that they require. Introduced as a way to reduce the paperwork around caring for patients, putting all the information in one profile to improve ease of access. Through this, it can make patient care more efficient as it is unlikely that bits of information will slip through the cracks. Previously, if a sheet of paper were to go missing from the medical records, that could have vital information that could have possibly saved a patient. Now with it all electronically stored, it is unlikely that this could happen all; it can just be updated whenever somebody visits their GP or the hospital. 

Patient safety has been improved

The one drawback its many medical professionals feel they are doing admin more than they are taking care of patients. With this in mind, it is only natural that teething problems will be faced with a change of system. If you are used to working in one way for so long, it stands to reason that it will take time to adapt when new methods are introduced. In fact, on a far more positive note, it has made patient safety considerably better as there was a more concise set of results written so people could read it. this is a far cry from the days of illegible handwriting from some doctors making medical notes harder to read. Forms are also less likely to be photocopied into oblivion with words rubbing off with every additional copy. This has to be a huge positive as patients will feel safer when being treated. All of this offers a greater sense of trust within the systems itself as there seems to be a more coherent strategy to improve patients care and as well as the quality of service. 

Casinos faced similar issues. 

It isn’t just medicine that saw teething issues when changing how they operate. For example, when casinos first moved online, there were teething issues ad people were reluctant to change from what they knew, but over time it has become a huge industry. Sites like Jackpotcitycasino.com/canada can help illustrate this point as by updating the games as they go there, you attract more players as they see the improvements. 

This concept can also be applied to EMR as, over time, it is likely that improvements will happen as more people highlight any potential problems, which then allows the regulator to work out where adjustments can be made. However, these things take time, so it is essential that people are patient and improvements will come in time. 

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The Editorial Team at Healthcare Business Today is made up of skilled healthcare writers and experts, led by our managing editor, Daniel Casciato, who has over 25 years of experience in healthcare writing. Since 1998, we have produced compelling and informative content for numerous publications, establishing ourselves as a trusted resource for health and wellness information. We offer readers access to fresh health, medicine, science, and technology developments and the latest in patient news, emphasizing how these developments affect our lives.