Yesterday at the Build developer conference, Microsoft unveiled the next version of Windows to developers from around the world. Windows 8 has received a great deal of press over the past few months, with usability among the mantras. I am always interested in finding ways to improve the user interface for consumers. In the case of electronic health records (EHRs), organization and simplicity are thought to play a role in improving safety and productivity. Reviewing the general layout of some of the top certified EHRs in the country has left me desirous of a cleaner user experience.
We expect the systems to check for allergies, allow documentation of clinical impressions, or display critical lab values. However, we haven't really provided input to the vendor community on how these things should be shown. There are a number of lessons everyone in healthcare technology can learn from our counterparts in mainstream operating systems. This 90 minute developer video does a great job of showing just how much thought and resource IT companies are giving to the user interface. Some might argue the certification criteria should include usability measures, and we will most likely see healthcare software migrate to this thought process in the future. After all, it has taken the largest software company in the world over 25 years to gain the necessary experience.
Certainly we need to understand more about who needs to see it, where/when should it show, and what should it say. The information has to be meaningful and actionable, but it also needs to be clear. We try to show so much information to providers and clinical staff, sometimes we may be doing more harm than good. In Pharmacy Informatics, missing one piece of information in a sea of text can have dire consequences. it is our job to help vendor's understand just how important the user experience is to safe and effective patient care. I personally am looking forward to the journey with our vendor and clinical partners.
