title: The feasibility of digital pen and paper technology for vital sign data capture in acute care settings.
abstract: The transition from paper to electronic documentation systems in acute care settings is often gradual and characterized by a period in which paper and electronic processes coexist. Intermediate technologies are needed to "bridge" the gap between paper and electronic systems as a means to improve work flow efficiency through data acquisition at the point of care in structured formats to inform decision support and facilitate reuse. The purpose of this paper is to report on the findings of a study conducted on three acute care units at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, MA to evaluate the feasibility of digital pen and paper technology as a means to capture vital sign data in the context of acute care workflows and to make data available in a flow sheet in the electronic medical record.
authors.affiliation: Partners HealthCare System, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Patricia C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Dykes
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Benoit
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Joan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gallagher
authors.forename: Qi
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Cindy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Spurr
authors.forename: E Jan
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: McGrath
authors.forename: Susan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Kilroy
authors.forename: Marita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Prater
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001292:Attitude to Computers; D003625:Data Collection; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006751:Hospital Information Systems; D006769:Hospitals, General; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized / Q000191:economics; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000379:methods*; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital; D010209:Paper; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013673:Technology Assessment, Biomedical; D014584:User-Computer Interface