Emergency Medical Service Information System:the ARES 118 experience.

BACKGROUND: In this paper we describe ARES 118, the prehospital Emergency Medical Service of the Region Lazio, Italy, focusing on its data system used to populate a data warehouse and to create ad hoc reports. ARES 118 is a regional public mono-specialized health company, established in 2004, that manages the emergency care throughout the Region Lazio. METHODS: Being a peculiar company in its kind, and being the first experience of this kind in Italy, ARES 118 has begun to equip itself, in an autonomous way, with a corporate information system, starting from what already existed as data collection from the individual provincial operating Centers and then by activating a unique information system at a regional and company level by deploying a data warehouse. All operations were carried out using open source software. RESULTS: Currently, ARES 118 is equipped with a business information system that enables data collection with its storage, management and processing of the same in fairly and easy way. The system allows the production of specific reports and measures modulated on the user requests in order to highlight the different aspects of the activity. CONCLUSIONS: The production of ad hoc reports, with the possibility of developing specific indicators, allows the identification and analysis of critical areas/processes in order to implement any corrective actions and monitor the effectiveness of the sam.

[Risk management in therapeutic procedures: the integrated flowsheet. Experience in a CQI context]. / La gestione del rischio nel processo terapeutico: la scheda di terapia integrata. Una esperienza in un'ottica di miglioramento continuo della qualità (MCQ).

UNLABELLED: Medication errors are an important problem in healthcare organizations. The Health Ministry and other government bodies have advised personnel directly involved in the care process as well as hospital management to adopt methods to prevent clinical risk. For this reason, the Sant'Andrea hospital of Rome , after analyzing the problem , decided to resolve it by introducing some corrective measures such as the integrated medication flowsheet. GOALS: To integrate the competence and knowledge necessary to fulfill patients' needs while safeguarding the different professional areas; to obtain better standards of quality , safety and patient satisfaction while enhancing job satisfaction and integration in all the professionals of the équipe.