Table 1 Summary of characteristics of subjects in each group (N = 200 patients in total)
Characteristic | Paper prescribing n = 100 patients (%) | Electronic Prescribing n = 100 patients (%) | p Value |
|---|---|---|---|
Age of patient (years) | 0.085 (t-test) | ||
Mean ± Standard Deviation (SD) | 59.0 ± 15.11 | 62.54 ± 13.75 | |
Median | 61.0 | 64.5 | |
Range | 26 to 89 | 24 to 85 | |
Duration of Hospital Stay (days) | 0.488 (t-test) | ||
Mean ± SD | 6.9 ± 6.65 | 7.7 ± 9.39 | |
Median | 5.0 | 5.0 | |
Range | 0 to 42 | 0 to 62 | |
Gender of patient | 1.00 (Chi-squared) | ||
Male | 64 (64) | 64 (64) | |
Female | 36 (36) | 36 (36) | |
Allergy status | 0.716 (Chi-squared) | ||
Reported allergy | 32 (32) | 28 (28) | |
No known drug allergy | 68 (68) | 72 (72) | |
Subject died during admission | 0.552 (Chi-squared) | ||
Yes | 5 (5) | 7 (7) | |
No | 95 (95) | 93 (93) | |
Errors in transcription of allergy from admission documentation to inpatient system | (Chi-squared) | ||
Incomplete entries (N = 200 patients) | 4 of 100 (4 %) | 9 of 100 (9 %) | 0.152 |
Illegible (handwritten only) or incorrect entries (wrong drug selected) (N = 200 patients) | 7 of 100 (7 %) | 5 of 100 (5 %) | 0.616 |
Profession/Grade of admitting clinician | 0.676 (Chi-squared) | ||
Nurse | 1 (1) | 1(1) | |
Junior doctor, note all qualified more than one year. | 79 (79) | 74 (74) | |
Registrar | 24 (24) | 20 (20) | |
Not recorded in medical notes | 0 (0) | 1 (1) | |
Gender of admitting clinician | 0.517 (Chi-squared) | ||
Male | 51 (51) | 43 (43) | |
Female | 46 (46) | 53 (53) | |
Not known to data collector | 3 (3) | 4 (4) | |