Transcript Multi-Agent Communication

Information Systems and
Patient Care
Jenna Hetland
Overview
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Prevalence and Causes of Medical Errors
Current Research and Solutions
Emergence of Intelligent Agents
Proposed Direction of Research
Prevalence and Causes of
Medical Errors
• Between 44,000 and 98,000 deaths
attributed to medical error each year
• Adverse drug events alone account for over
7,000 deaths annually
– More than workplace injuries
• These figures are for deaths only, not
occurrences
Prevalence and Causes of
Medical Errors
• Errors are a systems problem, not the result
of individual carelessness
– Other high-risk industries have abandoned the
error-free operator mentality
– Attacking problems from a systems viewpoint
has proven successful
• Errors are not discrete events
• Systems are constantly changing
Current Research and Solutions
• Error reporting systems
– Personnel must accurately recall the events
surrounding the incident
– Error would need to be reported multiple times
before root cause could be identified
– A reactive solution
Current Research and Solutions
• Implementation of Information Systems
– Many have been aimed at optimizing time
resources of medical personnel
– Are task-specific
– Current systems do not promote the qualities
necessary for effective information systems
– Over half have failed because of resistance on
behalf of medical personnel
Emergence of Intelligent Agents
• An alternative to traditional systems
• Possess many qualities suitable for use in
the healthcare domain
• Support initiatives necessary for effective
information systems
• Preliminary investigation has shown them
to be effective
• Obstacles still remain
Proposed Direction of Research
• Integrate essential tasks as well as optimize
conditions for the patient
• Use of patient-centric autonomous agents
• Occurrence of adverse drug events within
the prescription renewal process
– Great deal of information passed between
personnel
– Monetary discrepancy
Questions?