Tick a box, any box: a case study on the unintended consequences of system misuse in a hospital emergency department

Abstract

Long patient waiting periods and a high administrative load plagued the Emergency Department of a major Australian hospital. In response, the department installed a new information system. Technically, the new system worked perfectly. Yet, within 9 months the department suffered a catastrophic loss of patient revenue. The financial disaster led to senior doctors being forced to abandon their medical duties in order to correct complex administrative problems. It triggered a complete review of training, task and role prioritisation. This case study describes a major and costly error resulting from the use of the newly implemented hospital IS. It traces how the error came about, how the hospita..