Survey: Nurses say device interoperability needs improving

Nurses believe medical errors could be reduced if the medical devices hospitals rely on for testing, monitoring, and treating patients could seamlessly share information, according to results of a new national survey. According to the survey of more than 500 nurses conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of the Gary and Mary West Health Institute, half of the nurses said they witnessed a medical error resulting from a lack of coordination among medical devices in a hospital setting. Devices include everything from infusion pumps, ventilators, pulse oximeters, blood pressure cuffs to electronic health records. The weighted survey was conducted online by Harris Poll from January 7-16, 2015 and included 526 nurses.