Clinical decision support (CDS) Electronic Medical Records (EMR) Software alerts have a great potential to save patient lives. CDS EMR alerts allow physicians to have access to real-time patient data. This helps to enhance patient safety and medication accuracy. These alerts are robust enough to warn healthcare providers about any patient warning which can help to prevent miscalculations and minimize the occurrence of adverse drug events.
CDS tools essential in healthcare
CDS tools in Electronic Medical Records software empower clinicians by keeping them well-informed. According to researchers, CDS tools are a vital part of EHR systems, which leverage technology to find meaningful information for improved patient care, and accurate clinical decision-making.
Advantages of CDS EMR alerts
Identify adverse drug events
EMR-integrated CDS functionality can help prevent adverse drug events (ADEs). Medication-related alerts and reminders can reduce up to 81 percent of medication errors.
Improved patient safety
A literature review of 41 texts revealed that CDS alerts were appropriate for patient outcomes and provider practice performance for diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart ailments. CDS tools are also effective for prescribing medication to patients.
CDS alerts had a positive impact on the treatment of cardiovascular disease and physician performance. The brief message reminders and alerts improved medication prescribing and patient diet for better heart health.
For patients with diabetes, short message alerts enhanced medication adherence and reduced missed dosages. CDS EHR alerts are improving patient medication adherence as they keep patients mindful of taking their medication at the right time. This can ultimately enhance health outcome levels and improve quality of life.
Enhanced patient awareness
Electronic health records integrated CDS tools have proven to boost cardiovascular risk factor awareness in the field of oncology. The powerful alert tools can even enhance cardiovascular health for breast cancer survivors, according to research by Stanford.
Clinician burnout associated with CDS alerts
CDS EMR alerts have numerous benefits for clinicians, however, they can result in clinician burnout. These alerts are linked to alerts fatigue and increased usage of EMR software.
To overcome clinician burnout related to CDS EHR alerts it is advised that they should be customized with specific patient data to reduce the number of notifications received. As with any healthcare technology and electronic medical records systems, CDS tools require continued optimization and updates to follow medical standards and improve their effectiveness.
