Turning small errors into bigger ones: A problem for EHRs

As electronic health record systems become more interconnected, errors may propagate much farther than under old paper-based systems, a recent study suggested. According to a review by the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, mistakes and near misses involving electronic health records were analogous to those made with paper-based records with one caveat: those made with EHRs tend to be amplified and can affect a larger group of people.

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