Effect of an electronic alert on treatment of skin and soft tissue infections

Himali Weerahandi, Joseph Lurio, Michelle Pichardo, Damon Duquaine, Winfred Wu, Neil Caiman, Don Weiss, Melissa A. Marx, Jason J. Wang

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

This is a prospective intervention study conducted between 2007 and 2011 to evaluate whether an electronic alert can influence provider practice in treatment of skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs). A best-practice alert (BPA) was programmed to appear for intervention ICD-9 SSTI diagnoses. Controls were patients who had other SSTI ICD-9 codes where the BPA was not programmed to fire. Rate of culture taken in patients was compared between patients in the intervention and control groups. We found that cultures were taken among 13.5% of the intervention group and 5.4% of the control group (p <.0001). A logistic regression analysis controlling for eovariates showed the odds of the intervention group having a culture taken was 2.6 times that of the control group. The results of this study support the use of BPAs for improving the management of SSTIs.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)203-207
Number of pages5
JournalJournal of Medical Practice Management
Volume30
Issue number3
StatePublished - Nov 1 2014
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • MRSA
  • Skin and soft tissue infection
  • Smart set

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Health Policy

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