Nurses: New EHR system putting patients at risk

Sutter Corporation's launch of a new electronic health record system at its East Bay hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area is causing numerous problems and putting patients at risk, according to the California Nurses Association. More than 100 reports against the Epic system implemented in Sutter's Oakland and Berkeley facilities have been submitted by RNs to hospital management, citing software errors, computer-generated delays and inability to properly monitor patients.

The reports also cited specific incidents where the EHR caused potential harm--such as a delay in treatment that caused a patient to be transferred to the intensive care unit--and a nurse who was unable to promptly obtain blood during an emergency. CNA reported that the extra time that the EHR requires takes nurses away from direct patient care, which has increased patient dissatisfaction. Announcement