Telehealth Uptake and Impact on Care Activities in Australian General Practice During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a shift in the delivery of patient care, with telehealth rapidly scaled to facilitate access to care while reducing risks of COVID-19 transmission. In this paper, we present an overview of key findings regarding telehealth use from a large program of work examining the impact of the pandemic on general practice activity in Australia. Our findings demonstrate the pivotal role telehealth played in enabling patient access to care during the first two years of the pandemic. Importantly, however, we identified several facets of telehealth use including equitable access, workflow and infrastructure, and adequate funding, which require attention to optimise telehealth services in practice.

The need to strengthen the evaluation of the impact of Artificial Intelligence-based decision support systems on healthcare provision.

Despite the renewed interest in Artificial Intelligence-based clinical decision support systems (AI-CDS), there is still a lack of empirical evidence supporting their effectiveness. This underscores the need for rigorous and continuous evaluation and monitoring of processes and outcomes associated with the introduction of health information technology. We illustrate how the emergence of AI-CDS has helped to bring to the fore the critical importance of evaluation principles and action regarding all health information technology applications, as these hitherto have received limited attention. Key aspects include assessment of design, implementation and adoption contexts; ensuring systems support and optimise human performance (which in turn requires understanding clinical and system logics); and ensuring that design of systems prioritises ethics, equity, effectiveness, and outcomes. Going forward, information technology strategy, implementation and assessment need to actively incorporate these dimensions. International policy makers, regulators and strategic decision makers in implementing organisations therefore need to be cognisant of these aspects and incorporate them in decision-making and in prioritising investment. In particular, the emphasis needs to be on stronger and more evidence-based evaluation surrounding system limitations and risks as well as optimisation of outcomes, whilst ensuring learning and contextual review. Otherwise, there is a risk that applications will be sub-optimally embodied in health systems with unintended consequences and without yielding intended benefits.

Identifying Diagnostic Stewardship Mechanisms in the Electronic Test Result Management Process - Preliminary Findings from a Scoping Review.

Digital health can play a key role in diagnostic stewardship, which refers to the coordinated guidance and interventions to ensure the appropriate utilisation of diagnostic tests for therapeutic decision-making. Outcomes of test result management and the impacts of digital health are a result of the interaction between dimensions of a complex environment. This poster will present preliminary findings from a scoping review which identifies the stewardship mechanisms that facilitate safe and effective electronic management of test results.

Classification of Long COVID from General Practitioner Diagnosis Text.

Major challenges exist in identifying Long COVID patients from diagnosis texts recorded by general practitioners. A classification framework is proposed that can be used to identify Long COVID patients given these unstructured diagnostic texts. This framework can be leveraged to provide a general understanding of the risk factors, management strategies, and outcomes associated with Long COVID in Australia.

Automatic dispensing cabinets and governance of controlled drugs: an exploratory study in an intensive care unit.

BACKGROUND: Governance of controlled drugs (CDs) in hospitals is resource intensive but important for patient safety and policy compliance. OBJECTIVES: To explore whether and how storing CDs in an automated dispensing cabinet (ADC) in a children's hospital intensive care unit (ICU) contributes to the effectiveness and efficiency of CD governance. METHODS: We conducted a mixed-methods exploratory study, comprising observations, interviews and audits, 3 months after ADC implementation. We observed 54 hours of medications activities in the ICU medication room (with 42 hours of timed data); interviewed nurses (n=19), management (n=1) and pharmacy staff (n=3); reviewed 6 months of ICU incident reports pertaining to CD governance; audited 6 months of CD register data and extracted logs of all ADC transactions for the 3 months following implementation. Data analysis focused on four main CD governance activities: safekeeping/controlling access, documenting use, monitoring, and reporting/investigating. RESULTS: Nurses and pharmacists perceived spending less time on CD governance tasks with the ADC. The ADC supported CD governance through automated documentation of CD transactions; 'blind counts'; automated count discrepancy checks; electronic alerts and reporting functionalities. It changed quality and distribution of governance tasks, such as removing the requirement for 'nurses with keys' to access CDs, and allowing pharmacists to generate reports remotely, rather than reviewing registers on the ward. For CDs in the ADC, auditing and monitoring appeared to be ongoing rather than periodic. Such changes appeared to create positive reinforcing loops. However, the ADC also created challenges for CD governance. Most importantly, it was not suitable for all CDs, leading to workarounds and parallel use of a safe plus paper registers. CONCLUSIONS: ADCs can significantly alter CDs governance in clinical areas. Effects of an ADC on efficiency and effectiveness of governance tasks appear to be complex, going beyond simple time savings or more stringent controls.

Social interactions and quality of life of residents in aged care facilities: A multi-methods study.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between social contact and quality of life is well-established within the general population. However, limited data exist about the extent of social interactions in residential aged care facilities (RACFs) providing long-term accommodation and care. We aimed to record the frequency and duration of interpersonal interactions among residents in RACFs and identify the association between residents' interpersonal interactions and quality of life (QoL). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A multi-methods study, including time and motion observations and a QoL survey, was conducted between September 2019 to January 2020. Thirty-nine residents from six Australian RACFs were observed between 09:30-17:30 on weekdays. Observations included residents' actions, location of the action, and who the resident was with during the action. At the end of the observation period, residents completed a QoL survey. The proportion of time residents spent on different actions, in which location, and with whom were calculated, and correlations between these factors and QoL were analysed. RESULTS: A total of 312 hours of observations were conducted. Residents spent the greatest proportion of time in their own room (45.2%, 95%CI 40.7-49.8), alone (47.9%, 95%CI 43.0-52.7) and being inactive (25.6%, 95%CI 22.5-28.7). Residents were also largely engaged in interpersonal communication (20.2%, 95%CI 17.9-22.5) and self-initiated or scheduled events (20.5%, 95%CI 18.0-23.0). Residents' interpersonal communication was most likely to occur in the common area (29.3%, 95%CI 22.9-35.7), residents' own room (26.7%, 95%CI 21.0-32.4) or the dining room (24.6%, 95%CI 18.9-30.2), and was most likely with another resident (54.8%, 95%CI 45.7-64.2). Quality of life scores were low (median = 0.68, IQR = 0.54-0.76). Amount of time spent with other residents was positively correlated with QoL (r = 0.39, p = 0.02), whilst amount of time spent with facility staff was negatively correlated with QoL (r = -0.45, p = 0.008). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Our findings confirm an established association between social interactions and improved QoL. Opportunities and activities which encourage residents to engage throughout the day in common facility areas can support resident wellbeing.

Challenges of Digital Commons: A Qualitative Study of an Automated Dispensing Cabinet in a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit.

Missed medication doses can affect patient safety in hospitals. The use of automated dispensing cabinets (ADC) in clinical areas may reduce the occurrence of medications being unavailable at the time of need by alerting pharmacy to replenish stock. However, workarounds in ADC use can affect this capability. We studied nurses' use of an ADC in a paediatric intensive care unit with  54 hours of observation, semi-structure interviews (19 nurses; 4 pharmacy/management staff) and review of reported incidents. We found running out of medication a recurrent problem despite the ADC. Contributing factors affecting data entry in the ADC, and therefore replenishment alerts to pharmacy, included: the organisation of medication activities in the ward, nurses' information needs, patients' medication needs, and ADC design. Running out of medications was a 'tragedy of the commons'. Effective solutions may require going beyond user training and directives for accurate data entry, to work process redesign.

Evaluation of an Automated Dispensing Cabinet in Paediatric Intensive Care - Focus on Controlled Medications.

Evidence is limited of automated dispensing cabinets (ADCs) impact on effectiveness and efficiency of controlled drugs' (CDs) governance processes. We carried out a mixed-methods study of an ADC in an intensive care unit. We found ADC improved effectiveness and efficiency of governance of CDs through secure storage, alerts and automated recording of transactions. Limitations were associated with ADC design and 'fit' between ADC and some types of CDs.

Impact of Electronic Medication Management on the Physical Location of Work in a Paediatric Setting.

Electronic medication management (eMM) systems can have a significant impact on efficiency and safety. There is limited evidence on the effects of eMM implementation on the physical location of work. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of eMM and associated hardware implementation on the location of tasks performed by doctors and nurses. 41.5 hours of observation were conducted in the oncology ward of a paediatric hospital. Tasks, locations and resources used were recorded pre and post eMM implementation. Results showed that a wider variety of locations were used to conduct tasks following eMM implementation. Post-eMM, more tasks were performed in the hallway, where medication trolleys with attached laptops were situated, and in patient rooms where additional computers were installed, providing more opportunities for patient/carer and clinician interaction. The findings from this study reveal the impact that computer placement has on the location of work for doctors and nurses, and the importance of planning hardware placement for eMM implementation.

Associations between double-checking and medication administration errors: a direct observational study of paediatric inpatients.

BACKGROUND: Double-checking the administration of medications has been standard practice in paediatric hospitals around the world for decades. While the practice is widespread, evidence of its effectiveness in reducing errors or harm is scarce. OBJECTIVES: To measure the association between double-checking, and the occurrence and potential severity of medication administration errors (MAEs); check duration; and factors associated with double-checking adherence. METHODS: Direct observational study of 298 nurses, administering 5140 medication doses to 1523 patients, across nine wards, in a paediatric hospital. Independent observers recorded details of administrations and double-checking (independent; primed-one nurse shares information which may influence the checking nurse; incomplete; or none) in real time during weekdays and weekends between 07:00 and 22:00. Observational medication data were compared with patients' medical records by a reviewer (blinded to checking-status), to identify MAEs. MAEs were rated for potential severity. Observations included administrations where double-checking was mandated, or optional. Multivariable regression examined the association between double-checking, MAEs and potential severity; and factors associated with policy adherence. RESULTS: For 3563 administrations double-checking was mandated. Of these, 36 (1·0%) received independent double-checks, 3296 (92·5%) primed and 231 (6·5%) no/incomplete double-checks. For 1577 administrations double-checking was not mandatory, but in 26·3% (n=416) nurses chose to double-check. Where double-checking was mandated there was no significant association between double-checking and MAEs (OR 0·89 (0·65-1·21); p=0·44), or potential MAE severity (OR 0·86 (0·65-1·15); p=0·31). Where double-checking was not mandated, but performed, MAEs were less likely to occur (OR 0·71 (0·54-0·95); p=0·02) and had lower potential severity (OR 0·75 (0·57-0·99); p=0·04). Each double-check took an average of 6·4 min (107 hours/1000 administrations). CONCLUSIONS: Compliance with mandated double-checking was very high, but rarely independent. Primed double-checking was highly prevalent but compared with single-checking conferred no benefit in terms of reduced errors or severity. Our findings raise questions about if, when and how double-checking policies deliver safety benefits and warrant the considerable resource investments required in modern clinical settings.

Understanding the work of case managers in Australian community aged care: a longitudinal time and motion study.

Objective The aim of this study was to quantify the work activities of community aged care case managers and assess changes following consumer-directed policy reforms. Methods A longitudinal, time and motion study was performed, with direct observation (n=339h) of case managers undertaking work in the office or in the community. We compared the distribution of proportions of time spent across seven broad work task categories during May-August 2014 (P1) and May-October 2016 (P2). Results Office time was primarily consumed by communication (43.7%) and documentation (33.3%) tasks. Documentation increased substantially from P1 to P2 (29.4% vs 37.0% respectively; P<0.001), with more time spent on the subtask of recording information (18.0% vs 24.5% respectively; P=0.039). Travel (45.9%) and communication (41.0%) accounted for most community time. Time in communication increased from P1 to P2 (37.3% vs 48.4% respectively; P=0.047), with more time allocated to client communication (14.6% vs 31.7%; P<0.001). Case managers spent 33.6% of community time in clients' homes (median 25.2min per client; 22.8 vs 30.1min in P1 and P2 respectively) and visited a median of two clients per day (3 vs 1 visits per day in P1 and P2 respectively). Conclusions This study provides the first quantification of task-time distribution among this workforce and how work patterns have changed during a time of significant policy reform and operational changes within the community aged care sector. What is known about the topic? Early qualitative studies gauging case managers' perceptions of the effect of consumer-directed care reforms on their work activities indicate an increase in time spent working directly with aged care clients. However, there is no existing quantitative evidence examining changes to case managers' work activities. What does this paper add? By capturing timed, multidimensional data, this study provides new quantitative evidence of how case managers distribute their time on work activities in office and community settings. Further, the results provide an indication of changes in work task-time distribution over a 2-year period when significant policy reforms and operational changes occurred. Amid a changing aged care landscape, how and with whom case managers spend their time was found to shift, with an increase in time spent recording information and communicating with clients identified. What are the implications for practitioners? This study demonstrates that direct observational studies provide important evidence of the ways in which policy and organisational changes affect community aged care case managers' work activities in practice. Triangulating this quantitative evidence with existing qualitative accounts of policy impact can further allow assessment of how complex reforms may affect everyday work. For policy makers and aged care organisations, such evidence can help discern whether policies and changes are having their desired effects, as well as providing insights as to why or why not.

The efficiency-thoroughness trade-off after implementation of electronic medication management: a qualitative study in paediatric oncology.

OBJECTIVE: The efficiency-thoroughness trade-off (ETTO) principle proposes that people and organizations are often required to make a trade-off between being efficient and being thorough, as it is difficult to be both efficient and thorough at the same time. This study aimed to compare pre- electronic medication management system (EMMS) expectation of how an EMMS is likely to impact on efficiency and thoroughness to post-EMM experiences of an EMMS and the ETTO. DESIGN: Qualitative interview study. SETTING: A paediatric oncology cancer centre in a large paediatric tertiary teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: Forty-four semi-structured interviews with doctors, nurses and pharmacists six months prior to and two years following implementation of an EMMS. RESULTS: Prior to EMM implementation, staff identified a number of areas of work where both efficiency and thoroughness were expected to improve with EMM. These included ease of accessibility of the medication record, and organization and legibility of medication information. Following EMMS implementation, staff reported improvements in these areas. However, the EMMS was perceived to drive thoroughness (safety) benefits at the expense of efficiency (time). Measures to improve safety in the EMMS enforced processes that required time, such as medication double-checking procedures. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, staff were aware of the competitive interplay between thoroughness and efficiency and reported that introduction of an EMMS had imposed processes that favoured improvements in thoroughness at the expense of efficiency.

The 'Back Office' of a Dispensing Cabinet: Technology and Work Contributing to Medication Safety.

Automated dispensing cabinets in clinical wards may contribute to improving safety by reducing the likelihood of medications not being available when needed. However, achieving this safety benefit is dependent on a 'back office' sociotechnical infrastructure that combines semi-automated processes with mindful, resilient work practices.

Fit Between Individuals, Tasks, Technology, and Environment (FITTE) Framework: A Proposed Extension of FITT to Evaluate and Optimise Health Information Technology Use.

Evaluating and optimising 'fit' between technology and clinical work is critical to ensure the intended benefits of technology implementations are achieved. Using a mixed method approach (structured observation, interviews, field notes) we collected data regarding users, tasks, technology, and factors impeding technology use from a sample of 38 clinicians on two wards at an Australian hospital. We used the FITT framework to assess the relationships between users, tasks, and technology. Our findings showed that even when adequate fit between users, tasks, and technology was attained additional factors related to the environment (including the temporal rhythms of a ward, infection control rooms, or space limitations) ultimately affected technology use. Thus, we propose the fit between individuals, task, technology and environment (FITTE) framework as a means to evaluate and optimise technology use by explicating the relationships between users, tasks, technology, and the environment in which they operate.

A cross-country time and motion study to measure the impact of electronic medication management systems on the work of hospital pharmacists in Australia and England.

BACKGROUND: Qualitative studies have provided important insights into how hospital pharmacists' work changes when electronic medication management (EMM) systems are introduced. Quantitative studies of work practice change are rare. Despite the use of EMM systems internationally, there are no cross-country comparative studies of their impact on health professionals' work. We aimed to quantify and compare the type and magnitude of changes in hospital pharmacists' work pre- and post-EMM implementation in two countries. METHODS: Parallel, direct observational, time and motion studies of pharmacists in Australia and England pre- and post-EMM implementation. 20 pharmacists were observed: 9 in an Australian 440-bed hospital (155 h); and 11 pharmacists in a 500-bed English hospital (258 h). The Work Observation Method By Activity Timing (WOMBAT) software was used to collect observational data. Proportions of observed time in 11 tasks by study period (pre- versus post-EMM) and site, time spent with others or alone, and using different tools (e.g computers, paper) were calculated. Magnitude of changes between pre- and post-EMM by task and country were determined using z-tests for proportions adjusting for multiple testing. RESULTS: At baseline, Australian and English pharmacists spent the greatest proportion of time in medication review. Post-EMM, time in medication review (Australia 21.6%-27.5%; England 27.1%-33.8%) and history-taking (Australia 7.6%-13.3%; England 19.5%-28.9%) significantly increased. Despite country differences in these tasks at baseline, the magnitude of changes did not significantly differ. English pharmacists increased time engaged in medication discussions with patients post-EMM (from 5.9% to 10.8%; p = 0.01). The Australian rate did not change (18.0%-27.2%; p = 0.09), but was higher at baseline. Post-EMM, Australian pharmacists spent 63.4% of time working alone, compared to 92.0% for English pharmacists. CONCLUSIONS: EMM systems impacted the same core areas of work and had a similar magnitude of effect on pharmacists' work in both countries. Anticipated reductions in medication review and history taking were not observed.

The impact of electronic meal ordering systems on hospital and patient outcomes: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Malnutrition is a serious clinical issue associated with adverse patient and hospital outcomes. Hospitals need to consider interventions that support the provision of optimal nutritional management and care for patients. Electronic meal ordering (EMO) systems provide an alternative to traditional paper-based meal ordering with the capacity to support appropriate orders, monitor nutritional status, and potentially improve clinical outcomes. METHODS: This review aimed to identify the impact of EMO systems on hospital and patient outcomes. We sought quantitative evidence (peer-reviewed and grey literature) from studies evaluating EMO systems in healthcare facilities, published after 1999 and available in the English language. RESULTS: We identified 23 studies evaluating one of three distinct EMO system-supported models: spoken menu, room service, and self-service. While limited, the evidence indicated that EMO systems were associated with: improved patient satisfaction; decreased food waste; increased consumption; and, for spoken menus, more time with patients. There was no substantive evidence of impact on clinical outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Whether EMO systems meet their potential to support nutritional monitoring and positively impact clinical outcomes remains unanswered within the evidence. Thus, policy makers and hospital management currently have a poor evidence base upon which to make decisions about the value of implementing EMO. Whether these systems can provide support and guidance to patients during meal ordering, improve order appropriateness and accuracy through compliance checking, identify patients in need of dietary education or those at risk of malnutrition are critical areas of focus for future research.

Implementing Information and Communication Technology to Support Community Aged Care Service Integration: Lessons from an Australian Aged Care Provider.

INTRODUCTION: There is limited evidence of the benefits of information and communication technology (ICT) to support integrated aged care services. OBJECTIVES: We undertook a case study to describe carelink+, a centralised client service management ICT system implemented by a large aged and community care service provider, Uniting. We sought to explicate the care-related information exchange processes associated with carelink+ and identify lessons for organisations attempting to use ICT to support service integration. METHODS: Our case study included seventeen interviews and eleven observation sessions with a purposive sample of staff within the organisation. Inductive analysis was used to develop a model of ICT-supported information exchange. RESULTS: Management staff described the integrated care model designed to underpin carelink+. Frontline staff described complex information exchange processes supporting coordination of client services. Mismatches between the data quality and the functions carelink+ was designed to support necessitated the evolution of new work processes associated with the system. CONCLUSIONS: There is value in explicitly modelling the work processes that emerge as a consequence of ICT. Continuous evaluation of the match between ICT and work processes will help aged care organisations to achieve higher levels of ICT maturity that support their efforts to provide integrated care to clients.