Clinical Decision Support Systems

Answer

1. Clinical Decision Support Systems

   Decision making has become part of human life, and as such, effective decision making is an art and science of getting the best result for each scenario. Primarily, decision making is related to problem-solving; that is, individuals and clinicians try to change the present medical condition or situation for the better.  Considering the need to arrive at a desirable decision within a workable time, systems that provide the needed information and participate in the general organizational decision-making processes have gained prominence in the medical field. They are known as Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSSs) (Sutton et al., 2020).  The clinical decision support system is an interactive clinical software designed to support the clinical experts navigate patient issues such as health care support and appropriate infrastructural support relevant for a specific patient case. Therefore, a clinical decision support system is a platform for making a medical observation to enhance the healthcare delivery system and enhance decision-making in relation to appropriate and existing clinical knowledge (Sutton et al., 2020). Nevertheless, despite the increasing use of the software since the 1970s to monitor and administer clinical practices, the approach has potential Pros and Cons, as discussed below.

   Clinical Decision Support Systems Pros, Cons and Rationale.

   Pros.	Rationale	Cons.	Rationale
   It reduces the potential rate of medical errors while protecting patient safety. As an integral part of the clinical procedures, CDSSs help manage the clinical records that would otherwise hinder appropriate decision making for the present condition (Sutton et al., 2020). Moreover, the system analyzes data and records from other departments, thus helping to avoid medical contradictions and misdiagnosis that is harmful to the patient's well-being (Ancker et al., 2017). Therefore, CDSSs help reduces medical errors through continuous examination and thorough monitoring and evaluation of clinical details and records.	Errors in healthcare can prove very costly, especially when such leads to loss of life. Therefore, this system is advantageous since it helps in enhancing patient and client safety.	The system increases the chance of alert Fatigue and irrelevant alerts that may not synchronize with the prevailing conditions (Lambin et al., 2017).  Most studies have established that many medical practitioners distrust the warnings when it concerns minor medical issues. Moreover, specific alerts go against the standard medical procedures to correct particular conditions, such as inflammatory conditions treated with a specific class of drugs administered through different routes (Sutton et al., 2020).	Although every case in a health institution deserves special attention, the reality remains that some are more critical than others. Therefore, with numerous alerts, the service providers may be fatigued, as they may perceive them unnecessary disturbance. However, this should not make them ignore the alerts since they may increase the intensity of a patient’s situation.

   It reduces the medical costs and patient stay in the hospital. In addition to managing the patient’s medical history to reduce duplicity in medical tests, the system's unique feature was designed to issue clinical alerts on the various medical variations (Ancker et al., 2017). For instance, the prompt updates such as the injury level, recovery progress and new infections discovered can reduce the period of stay in the hospital and the healthcare costs as a result of wrong prescription or misdiagnosis.

   This advantage becomes meaningful since healthcare should not only be efficient but also affordable. Thus, with a reduction in cost, CDSSs is more relevant and applicable in the contemporary health system.

   Clinical decision support systems have the potential to impact physicians and clinicians (Ancker et al., 2017). Following the traditional approaches to medical practices that double-check entries and orders, CDSSs have created a scenario where it is not necessary to double the entries, which is not the absolute truth. Additionally, over-reliance on the CDSSs process has a long-term effect on the cognitive skills of the physicians who tend to forget some of the standout medical procedures so common with the medical profession (Sutton et al., 2020).

   Despite building the physicians and healthcare providers in the pursuit of attaining efficiency, it also hampers their cognitive development, which makes it a reasonable con for a system and structure highly considered to bring massive changes in the medical industry.

    

   Clinical Patient and Scenario of How CDSS Might Influence My Decision as an Advanced Practicing Nurse.

   CDSS remains one of the popular practices in the medical field, which allows for appropriate management of data through advanced scientific methods of decision making (Sutton et al., 2020). As such, my patient and clinical scenario require the input of CDSSs in the Pediatric immunization delivery for children below two years. The pediatric immunization delivery system requires me to have appropriate knowledge of the patient’s history, parents' records, and the area of residences (Murthy et al., 2017). The decision-making system can help me navigate the process with appropriate notification on the due date for the vaccines.

    Moreover, CDSS has helped me make the appropriate choice on the information storage mechanisms as documentation is part and parcel of the immunization practices to track the developments while monitoring the drug effects (Murthy et al., 2017). For instance, through the system, I have managed the vast records for school going children while tracking the progress and movements to adhere to the vaccine’s schedules.  Additionally, because of the problem of maintaining a uniform implementation procedure, through the clinical alert feature in the Clinical decision support system, I have developed alert system specific to various child immunization schedules such as diphtheria shots, tetanus, and pertussis vaccines for children below age two in the CDSS guidelines (Murthy et al., 2017). It has helped me complete the processes within the period starting with a range that receives alert first.  Lastly, CDSS has influenced how I handle the vaccination schedules through annual updates in line with the vaccine’s availability and shortages.

    

    

   CDSSs improve medical outcomes while reducing the duplicity in medical tests (Ancker et al., 2017).  Looking into the patient's past and present medical history, CDSSs presents comprehensive data that is relevant for effective treatment of the medical condition.  Further, through scanning into the patient's records, the system helps reduces unnecessary medical costs and duplication in tests (Lambin et al., 2017). Therefore, CDSSs help clinicians manage the treatment costs that might rocket beyond an affordable level.

   The primary aim for every healthcare institution is to realize an improvement in the quality of outcome. Therefore, the system becomes more relevant because it ultimately helps in achieving this objective.

   There is likely a chance of registering inaccurate data and poor quality that might impact treatment procedure (Sutton et al., 2020). Studies have shown that the CDSSs continue to record and analyze patients' records even when there is a lack of appropriate medical supply. Further, the information gotten from the system can lead to false diagnosis when the policy is not updated accordingly (Ancker et al., 2017). Therefore, when poorly designed physicians and clinical users might enter generic data leading to medical outcomes.

   A total elimination of errors may not be attainable, especially since the CDSSs can keep recording and analyzing patients’ information even when unnecessary. Thus, makes it a critical demerit of the system.

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