A Resilience Model for Moderating Outcomes Related to Electronic Medical Record Downtime.

The objective of this scoping review is to develop a model to understand the factors that influence clinical downtimes or clinical activities in a healthcare organization. To report on the results of searches preformed using seven bibliographic databases, using the logical search criteria of (downtime AND (EMR OR Electronic Medical Record OR EHR OR Electronic Health Record). After a title, abstract and full-text review 26 articles remained. The articles were coded and analyzed for themes. Downtime planning activities mitigate the effects of disasters on patient safety outcomes and clinical delays. A model was developed representing the relationships between disasters, the moderating variable of downtime planning activities and patient safety as well as clinical outcomes. Disasters can have significant impact on patients and health professionals. Downtime planning activities can be enacted when a disaster occurs to moderate the effects of the downtime on patients and clinical activities and can improve safety.

Strategies in Electronic Medical Record Downtime Planning: A Scoping Study.

PURPOSE: This review will identify dominant themes, common to published articles that discuss downtime planning in a clinical setting. These common themes will represent key considerations for healthcare organizations' comprehensive downtime plans. METHOD: A scoping study was performed using search results from PubMed, CINAHL and Medline. The 4 articles meeting the inclusion criteria were analyzed for common themes and findings. RESULTS: Four common themes were found in the included articles: 1) Communications plans, 2) Procedure review and revision, 3) Managing system availability and 4) Preparing staff for handling incidents. CONCLUSION: Organizations must have comprehensive downtime plans available to ensure continuity of patient care during the periods of limited availability. A comprehensive downtime plan that includes these four strategies can become the framework for a set of organizational procedures that ensures the best possible access to vital patient information before, during, and after a downtime event.