June 2017

By the Numbers
For The Record
Vol. 29 No. 6 P. 34

52
This percentage of pharmacies dispensed dangerous drug pairs without warning patients of the potential interaction, according to the Chicago Tribune, which tested 255 chain and independent pharmacies in Chicago as well as Indiana, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Since the drugs used in the tests should have been easy catches, the failure may be due to the pressure of providing quick service, the article surmised.

22
A Rock Health survey found video-based telemedicine adoption more than tripled from 7% in 2015 to this percentage in 2016.

3.17
A study published in the April issue of Health Affairs that used data on physicians' time allocation patterns captured by EHR transactions found physicians logged a daily average of 3.08 hours on office visits and this number of hours on desktop medicine (eg, communicating with patients through a secure patient portal, responding to patients' online requests for prescription refills or medical advice, ordering tests, sending staff messages, and reviewing test results).

3 in 10
Although 84% of New Jersey residents have never received medical care via an electronic device or the telephone, about this number would be more likely to choose telehealth methods over in-person visits if they could have a longer visit, receive care sooner, or spend less money, according to a poll by The New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute and the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling at Rutgers University.

66
According to respondents of a March survey conducted by Venrock, the HIT subsectors facing the most challenges due to the Trump administration are accountable care organizations (this percentage) and insurance (62%), while the least challenged are wearables (10%) and telemedicine (12%).

$188,000
After Mecklenburg County mistakenly released the sensitive health information of 1,200 patients to media outlets, an investigation revealed spending had been approved for this amount in 2014 for a HIPAA-related program that was never implemented because the software was not compatible, reports wsoctv.com.

42
According to a report by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), this percentage of 112 ASCO Trends participants could not electronically integrate patient information from other practices or providers into their EHRs. Of the 64 practices that could, only one-third (21 practices) were able to do so consistently. Additionally, only 12 of the 112 practices could provide patients with their complete records in a format ready for integration into another EHR.