This usability study examined whether older adults could use a mobile application to consider the risks and benefits of anticholinergics, a high-risk medication class. The 23 participants reported an overall high usability for the application, suggesting that mobile health information technology has potential to engage patients in safety.

This randomized controlled trial found that tailoring drug–drug interaction alerts with relevant laboratory data did not improve physicians' adherence to treatment recommendations, even for patients at high risk of a clinically significant interaction.

Adverse events after hospital discharge are a continued threat to patient safety and the basis for interventions targeting key contributing factors. Premature discharge is an area less studied, partly because the decision-making for safe discharge falls on individual providers and their clinical assessment. This study developed a set of triggers based on selected laboratory abnormalities that could systematically identify patients potentially unsafe for discharge. Triggers that led to a discharge alert included an elevated white blood cell count, a rising creatinine level, specific abnormalities in electrolytes, and an elevated international normalized ratio (INR) in the absence of anticoagulant therapy. The discharge filter tool requires further validation, but it represents an innovation that leverages computerized systems to provide safer care.

This study found that adding decision support to an existing computerized provider order entry system reduced the frequency of excessively dosed prescriptions by emergency physicians from 74% to 43%.

… Journal of the American Geriatrics Society … J Am Geriatr Soc … Elderly patients are particularly … decision support systems are discussed in an AHRQ WebM&M perspective . …

Structured reminders within an existing computerized order entry system increased implementation of recommendations made by consulting physicians.