{"id":11401,"date":"2017-03-21T15:52:26","date_gmt":"2017-03-21T19:52:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/healthit-gov.go-vip.net\/buzz-blog\/?p=11401"},"modified":"2026-01-06T05:13:44","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T05:13:44","slug":"making-health-safer-easier-real-life-practical-tools-health-care-providers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthit.gov\/blog\/insights-updates\/making-health-safer-easier-real-life-practical-tools-health-care-providers\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Health IT Safer and Easier to Use in Real Life \u2013 Practical Tools for Health Care Providers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Every day, clinicians work tirelessly to provide the best possible care for their patients. Clinicians<\/a> and other health care providers like hospitals<\/a> are increasingly using health information technology (health IT) such as electronic health records (EHRs), and a growing body of evidence shows health IT can help them make care safer<\/a>. However, new technology can pose challenges and risks. At the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), patient safety is a top priority, and that\u2019s why we maintain the SAFER<\/a> Guides to help with the implementation decisions clinicians make to reduce EHR associated patient harm.\u00a0 (SAFER is the acronym for Safety Assurance Factors for Electronic Health Record Resilience.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The inherent safety of a health IT system depends on the interactive work of software developers, EHR implementers, and clinical users of EHRs. All of these stakeholders have a shared responsibility to make, maintain, and use the system safely. Yet, we often hear that the health IT in use today often falls short of users\u2019 expectations<\/a>.  EHR usability<\/a>\u2014the ease with which an EHR can be employed to help deliver care\u2014and the safety of a system is heavily influenced by two key design decision processes: (1) the developers\u2019 decisions about the functionalities or capabilities in the software created by the developer, and (2) those decisions made by the installing facility or practice when the EHR is implemented and customized. (ONC issues guidance on functionalities and capabilities through the ONC Health IT Certification Program.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Updated SAFER Guides<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The SAFER Guides, initially published in January 2014 have been downloaded by approximately 52,000 users to date. The guides provide an easy-to-use template for voluntary provider self-assessment of EHR safety related vulnerabilities. The Guides are compilations of evidence-based, expert-recommended practices for a key focus area, in a checklist-based format. Each Guide includes recommendations, checklists, and note templates that can be used by teams to thoroughly assess the safety and usability of EHRs while lessening data-related burdens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because there has been a rapid evolution of health IT since the original Guides\u2019 release, ONC updated the Guides, and included feedback from health care providers and EHR developers based on best practices and experiences. Taking into account comments and recommendations from the Electronic Health Record Association<\/a>, the National Quality Forum<\/a>, the National Academy of Medicine<\/a>, and the American Medical Informatics Association<\/a>, among others, key updates to the Guides include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n