DALLAS, TEXAS -
Parkland Hospital, home to a million out patients a year and 130 thousand emergency room visits, all used to be tracked the old fashioned way, on paper, but not anymore. Nurses like Lissy Abraham have gone high tech. She takes Walton Omakay's vital signs, then enters them in a mobile computerized work station where the information is stored for other nurses and doctors to see. Abraham says the old paper version was often hard to find.
"We had to go to the nurse station and then maybe somebody else is using, so we have to wait, this way we can access from anywhere."
Dr. Brett Moran says 3,000 doctors and 6,500 staff members had to be trained, but it was worth it. For doctors and nurses, patient history and chart reviews are now at their fingertips, and prescription orders go straight to the pharmacy.
"It's just taken all those extra handoffs and areas where accidents and mistakes can happen." Says Dr. Moran. "And it's improved efficiency and it's made it faster and safer for patient care."
In fact, a recent Johns Hopkins study of 40 Texas hospitals found that hospitals whose technology ranked in the top third had 15 percent fewer deaths and a 21 percent decrease in complications. If all American hospitals were paperless, it could save one-hundred thousand lives a year. Walton Omakay has been in and out of hospitals for the past four years. He says this time, he's noticed a difference.
"Well, when you used to come to the hospital, it was always like, you were waiting for hours and hours. now it's much more faster and much more efficient."
As for nurse Abraham., paperless is just what the doctor ordered.
"It's more convenient." Says Abraham. "You know, I like it, it's cool."
Within the next year, Children's and UT Southwestern are expected to be paperless. All three hospitals will be on the same system.
"We had to go to the nurse station and then maybe somebody else is using, so we have to wait, this way we can access from anywhere."
Dr. Brett Moran says 3,000 doctors and 6,500 staff members had to be trained, but it was worth it. For doctors and nurses, patient history and chart reviews are now at their fingertips, and prescription orders go straight to the pharmacy.
"It's just taken all those extra handoffs and areas where accidents and mistakes can happen." Says Dr. Moran. "And it's improved efficiency and it's made it faster and safer for patient care."
In fact, a recent Johns Hopkins study of 40 Texas hospitals found that hospitals whose technology ranked in the top third had 15 percent fewer deaths and a 21 percent decrease in complications. If all American hospitals were paperless, it could save one-hundred thousand lives a year. Walton Omakay has been in and out of hospitals for the past four years. He says this time, he's noticed a difference.
"Well, when you used to come to the hospital, it was always like, you were waiting for hours and hours. now it's much more faster and much more efficient."
As for nurse Abraham., paperless is just what the doctor ordered.
"It's more convenient." Says Abraham. "You know, I like it, it's cool."
Within the next year, Children's and UT Southwestern are expected to be paperless. All three hospitals will be on the same system.
