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Jan Horsky

Publications and source records attributed to Jan Horsky.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Comprehensive analysis of a medication dosing error related to CPOE.

This case study of a serious medication error demonstrates the necessity of a comprehensive methodology for the analysis of failures in interaction between humans and information systems. The authors used a novel approach to analyze a dosing error related to computer-based ordering of potassium chloride (KCl). The method included a chronological reconstruction of events and their interdependencies from provider order entry usage logs, semistructured interviews with involved clinicians, and interface usability inspection of the ordering system. Information collected from all sources was compared and evaluated to understand how the error evolved and propagated through the system. In this case, the error was the product of faults in interaction among human and system agents that methods limited in scope to their distinct analytical domains would not identify. The authors characterized errors in several converging aspects of the drug ordering process: confusing on-screen laboratory results review, system usability difficulties, user training problems, and suboptimal clinical system safeguards that all contributed to a serious dosing error. The results of the authors' analysis were used to formulate specific recommendations for interface layout and functionality modifications, suggest new user alerts, propose changes to user training, and address error-prone steps of the KCl ordering process to reduce the risk of future medication dosing errors.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

When you come to a fork in the road, take it: strategy selection in order entry.

This study investigates how CPOE system users choose data input strategies for entering clinical orders. Complex systems often allow more than one way to complete a task. However, the appropriate entry strategy in the context of a specific clinical workflow situation may not be apparent to users. We have conducted a cognitive analysis of user interaction strategies for entering IV injection orders using a commercial CPOE system. We characterized the set of available information resources in the system interface and in the users' memory, and evaluated how effectively the application supported decision-making processes. Seven internal medicine residents participated in an experiment entering IV heparin orders to manage anticoagulation therapy. The analysis showed that efficiency was contingent upon high level of procedural and conceptual system knowledge. CPOE interface design needs to conform to decision-making and workflow processes if the technology is to become an effective clinical tool.

Anticoagulants↗
PubMed2004

Computer-based drug ordering: evaluation of interaction with a decision-support system.

Provider order entry systems (POE) often incorporate active decision-support component for drug dosing. The efficacy of automated alerts that suggest dose amounts to the clinician in real time depends in part on how well they are timed to fit into the decision process and on their representational structure. We have conducted a cognitive evaluation of an interaction with a POE system that offered active decision support for heparin dosing with the goal of characterizing its effectiveness and opportunities for error. Two researchers completed a cognitive walk-through of an ordering task based on a clinical scenario. In addition, seven clinicians were asked to enter a set of orders in an experiment using the same scenario. The analysis revealed that users without a solid conceptual knowledge of the ordering system followed patterns of inefficient interactive behavior resulting in delays and some errors. Physicians often did not take full advantage of automatic dose computation provided by a decision support component and used it largely as reference. The calculated dose was not perceptually salient in the generated alert and required users to engage in meaning interpretation of the displayed information. Better visual presentation of the alert message would likely result in faster and less cognitively demanding interaction.

Anticoagulants↗
PubMed2003

The cognitive complexity of a provider order entry interface.

Computer-based provider order entry (POE) can reduce the frequency of preventable medical errors. However, overly complex interfaces frequently pose a challenge to users and impede clinical efficacy. We present a cognitive analysis of clinician interaction with a commercial POE system. Our investigation was informed by the distributed resources model, a novel approach designed to describe the dimensions of user interfaces that introduce unnecessary cognitive complexity. This approach characterizes the relative distribution of user's internal representations and external representations embodied in the system or environmental artifacts. The research consisted of two component analyses: a modified cognitive walkthrough evaluation and a simulated clinical ordering task performed by seven physicians. The analysis revealed that the configuration of resources placed unnecessarily heavy cognitive demands on the user, especially those who lacked a robust conceptual model of the system. The resources model was also used to account for patterns of errors produced by clinicians.

Cognition↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A framework for analyzing the cognitive complexity of computer-assisted clinical ordering.

Computer-assisted provider order entry is a technology that is designed to expedite medical ordering and to reduce the frequency of preventable errors. This paper presents a multifaceted cognitive methodology for the characterization of cognitive demands of a medical information system. Our investigation was informed by the distributed resources (DR) model, a novel approach designed to describe the dimensions of user interfaces that introduce unnecessary cognitive complexity. This method evaluates the relative distribution of external (system) and internal (user) representations embodied in system interaction. We conducted an expert walkthrough evaluation of a commercial order entry system, followed by a simulated clinical ordering task performed by seven clinicians. The DR model was employed to explain variation in user performance and to characterize the relationship of resource distribution and ordering errors. The analysis revealed that the configuration of resources in this ordering application placed unnecessarily heavy cognitive demands on the user, especially on those who lacked a robust conceptual model of the system. The resources model also provided some insight into clinicians' interactive strategies and patterns of associated errors. Implications for user training and interface design based on the principles of human-computer interaction in the medical domain are discussed.

Cognition↗