Abstract
The quality of the human-machine interface (HMI) in computerized physician order entry (CPOE) systems is a key factor affecting the error rate in the process of entering medication orders. The operation and functions of the HMI in CPOE systems vary among hospitals, since there is still no standardized HMI. Such differences in the HMI may lead to mistakes ; for example in drug selection and specification of the dosage regimen. The aims of this study were to investigate the usage of CPOE systems in hospitals and analyze the problems with their HMIs, by means of a questionnaire sent to doctors who use them. Replies were received from a total of 227 doctors in 17 hospitals. Nine hospitals used systems only requiring the input of up to two characters to display a list of drugs and 38.5% of their users said that they usually input no more than two characters. For greater reliability, however, CPOE systems should require users to input at least 3 characters to select a branded drug.
The questionnaire found that no doctors felt negative towards computer-based dosage checking systems so they should be incorporated into CPOE systems. Among users who were familiar with two or more systems, 80.6% felt that there were significant differences in their operation.
In conclusion, we feel that the optimization and standardization of the HMIs of CPOE systems are essential for reducing medication errors arising in their use.
