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Researchers find relation between missing data, errors

Quality Improvement Monitor, February 17, 2005

Missing clinical information could contribute to delays in care and medical errors, according to a study published in the February 2 Journal of the American Medical Association.

Clinical information such as laboratory and radiology results, letters, and medical history was missing during 13.6% of 1,614 patient visits analyzed at 32 Colorado clinics. Physicians believed that the missing information affected the patient's health 44% of the time, the study said.

Physicians with electronic medical records were less likely to misplace information, but researchers cautioned that some physicians in the study only had partial electronic records and still reported information missing.

The results stress the importance of making the patient and the patient's family part of the healthcare process, researchers said.

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