Code Blue: How Medical Records Can Kill | Daniel Shirvani | TEDxUBC

TL;DR

The next major healthcare crisis in the next 10 years will be the dysfunctionality and limitations of medical software.

Transcript

thank you in the next 10 years what do you think will be healthcare's next major crisis think about it overpopulation climate change perhaps or if you're really bold maybe even another deadly virus spiraling our way now to these three options and to any that you might have thought of I completely agree there are a lot of issues that Healthcare will... Read More

Key Insights

• 😷 The dysfunctionality and limitations of medical software pose a significant crisis in healthcare.
• 🛟 Outdated software can prevent patients from accessing life-saving treatments.
• 👨‍⚕️ EMRs contribute to physician burnout, reduce clinical effectiveness, and harm the doctor-patient relationship.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the main issue with medical software?

Medical software often lacks essential features, hindering healthcare providers from delivering optimal care. It contributes to physician burnout, reduces clinical effectiveness, and damages the doctor-patient relationship.

Q: Why was a potentially life-saving drug inaccessible to patients?

The case study of a heart clinic revealed that outdated software prevented doctors from flagging patients eligible for a life-saving drug. This limitation resulted in 200 patients in Vancouver not receiving the treatment they needed.

Q: How do EMRs impact the doctor-patient relationship?

A survey conducted by Stanford Medical School found that 60% of doctors believe EMRs need a complete overhaul. Doctors spend more time dealing with clunky software instead of focusing on patient care, leading to a breakdown in the doctor-patient relationship.

Q: How can EMR 2.0 address these issues?

EMR 2.0 is a concept that aims to prioritize patient care and support healthcare providers. It involves enabling doctors to analyze patient data effectively, potentially incorporating artificial intelligence, and streamlining data transfer to reduce inequality in healthcare.

Summary

The speaker discusses the next major crisis in healthcare and argues that it will be medical software. They share a personal experience working at a clinic where outdated software prevented doctors from providing potentially life-saving drugs to patients. The speaker goes on to explain the history of medical software and its origins in billing rather than patient care. They highlight the negative impact of current electronic medical records (EMR) systems on doctors, citing surveys that reveal high levels of physician burnout and reduced clinical effectiveness. The speaker proposes the concept of EMR 2.0, which focuses on supporting doctors and improving patient care rather than just storing medical data. They also discuss ongoing research on streamlining data transfer and reducing healthcare inequality. The speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of understanding the impact of technology on healthcare and questioning where the line should be drawn between an inconvenience and healthcare's silent killer.

Questions & Answers

Q: What major crisis does the speaker predict healthcare will face in the next 10 years?

The speaker believes that the next major crisis in healthcare will be medical software.

Q: Why does the speaker think medical software will be a crisis?

The speaker shares a personal experience working at a clinic where outdated software prevented doctors from providing potentially life-saving drugs to patients. This highlights the detrimental impact of medical software on patient care.

Q: How does the speaker describe the atmosphere at the clinic they worked at?

The speaker describes the clinic as warm and welcoming, with doctors, nurses, and staff who went the extra mile to provide the best healthcare possible for patients.

Q: What drug did the speaker work with at the clinic?

The speaker worked with a drug called impagleflozen, which was found to decrease heart-related mortality by almost 30% in a specific group of heart patients.

Q: Why were some patients unable to receive the potentially life-saving drug?

The speaker explains that the medical software used at the clinic did not have a feature to flag patients who were eligible for the drug, resulting in 200 patients not receiving the treatment.

Q: How does the speaker feel about the lack of software feature that prevented patients from receiving the drug?

The speaker expresses feelings of concern, disgust, and anger regarding the dysfunctional software and its consequences on patients' lives.

Q: What does the speaker initially research to understand the issue with medical software?

The speaker begins researching the history of medical software, also known as electronic medical records (EMR).

Q: When was the first EMR created?

The first EMR was made in 1972, when computers were still relatively new and not widely accessible.

Q: What fueled the growth of EMR systems in the early years?

Insurance companies saw computers and EMR systems as a way to expedite the process of billing patients, leading to the initial growth of EMR systems.

Q: What were some of the negative findings about EMRs in a study conducted by Stanford Medical School?

The study found that 71% of doctors believed that EMRs contributed greatly to physician burnout, 54% said EMRs took away from their career satisfaction, and almost half of the doctors reported reduced clinical effectiveness due to EMRs.

Q: According to the speaker's research, what common concern did doctors have about EMRs?

The speaker found that doctors, regardless of their background or specialty, were spending more time dealing with outdated software instead of focusing on patient care. They were worried that EMRs were taking away from the doctor-patient relationship.

Takeaways

Medical software, particularly electronic medical records (EMR) systems, is poised to become the next major crisis in healthcare. Outdated and clunky software hinders doctors' ability to provide optimal care to patients and contributes to physician burnout. The speaker suggests the concept of EMR 2.0, which focuses on supporting doctors and improving patient care through better software design. Understanding the impact of technology on healthcare is crucial, and there is a need to address the limitations and shortcomings of current medical software to prevent its negative consequences on patient outcomes.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Medical software, also known as electronic medical records (EMR), often lacks crucial features that hinder healthcare providers from delivering optimal care.

• A case study of a heart clinic reveals how outdated software prevented patients from accessing a potentially life-saving drug.

• A survey conducted by Stanford Medical School found that EMRs contribute to physician burnout, reduce clinical effectiveness, and harm the doctor-patient relationship.