6/12/2009 - "Drumright's hospital moves to an all-electronic records system to improve care and cut costs."
Wireless notebooks allow nurses to write in charts at patients' bedsides.
A pharmacy feature instantly alerts nurses and doctors to possible drug interactions or patient medication allergies.
Nurses no longer need to decipher doctors' handwriting.
Drumright Regional Hospital is believed to be the state's first to integrate an electronic medical records system to improve care and reduce costs.
"From a medication point of view, we are alerted to any kind of interaction," Nursing Director Susie Cook said. "It's given us all a big sigh of relief."
Other hospitals, particularly urban ones, have pieces of such a system. But none has one as comprehensive and interactive as Drumright's, said Val Schott, director of Oklahoma State University's Center for Rural Health.
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Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20090612_17_A13_LorriR963735