Using mobility technology to improve pharmacist workflow in the PICU rounding process

Abstract

Studies have indicated the clinical pharmacist plays a key role in reducing preventable adverse drug events (ADE), as well as decreasing costs and length of stay. Children are particularly at risk for ADEs, primarily due to incorrect dosages. At Children's Hospital in Omaha, Neb., clinical pharmacists are an integral part of the multidisciplinary Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) team, requiring efficient access to the electronic medical record and other online resources. Children's determined that fixed workstations were not optimal and decided to conduct a comparative workflow study to determine the impact of a mobility computing solution using the Motion C5 mobile clinical assistant. The findings showed solid improvement, increasing pharmacist time with the PICU rounding team to 98.89 percent. Children's also saw a significant decrease in the number of logins and time required to log in to workstations, and a 17 percent increase in pharmacist satisfaction with the rounding workflow.