The pediatric population is at high risk for medication errors in the emergency department, with medication error rates three times higher in pediatric patients than in adult patients, according to a study in Annals of Emergency Medicine.
Discharges are a common place for lapses and failures to occur, but when they involve patients suffering from mental illness or substance abuse, they can be even more challenging. Although these complex patient cases may present sizable hurdles, it’s important that facilities take measures to ensure discharges in these instances follow both federal and state guidelines and help protect vulnerable patients whenever possible.
CMS recently announced MyHealthEData, an initiative aimed at standardizing medical record data and giving patients the ability to share it with providers.
One of the most challenging barriers to patient health is often patients’ own behavior. Case managers encounter them daily: the patient who won’t follow the treatment plan, the patient who persists with unhealthy habits, or the patient who opts against making lifestyle changes that can improve his or her condition.
