Leapfrog Group calls for federal oversight of CPOE after simulation exposes errors

The Leapfrog Group, a longtime advocate for computerized physician order entry, is calling on federal officials to require hospitals and IT vendors to test CPOE systems for safety after the advocacy group found widespread safety problems in a simulation exercise.

"The federal government must exercise leadership here, because lives are at stake," Leapfrog Group Chairman David Knowlton, president and CEO of the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, said last week, Healthcare IT News reports. "As they define meaningful use as a standard for federal funding assistance to hospitals, they must require more than just adoption and implementation. The government must insist that hospitals and IT companies do continuous monitoring and improvement."

In initial testing of CPOE at 214 hospitals on the Leapfrog simulator, order-entry technology missed about half of common medication errors and one-third of potentially fatal med errors, reports the Washington-based organization, which represents large employers. Most hospitals improved their results after adjusting protocols and re-running the simulation, but that was not enough to mollify Leapfrog Group CEO Leah Binder.

"Although this is a simulation using fictitious patients and medication orders, it should be a red flag for every hospital and information technology company in America," Binder said. "The belief that simply buying and installing health information technology will automatically lead to safer and better care is a myth. Hospitals and vendors must continue to work together over time to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of CPOE."

In releasing its findings, the Leapfrog Group indicated that it was working with the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society to develop best practices for CPOE. The organization and its membership will continue to advocate for CPOE adoption. "When CPOE is implemented the right way and hospitals and vendors follow up to monitor and improve it, the result is what every patient hopes for when their life is at stake: the perfect harmony of caregiver and technology working for them," Binder said.

For more information:
- read the Leapfrog Group's report (.pdf)
- see this Healthcare IT News story

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