Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Bar Coding for Patient Safety

2005; Massachusetts Medical Society; Volume: 353; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1056/nejmp058101

1533-4406

Alexi A. Wright, Ingrid T. Katz,

Medical Coding and Health Information

A small revolution in patient safety is taking place in the basement of our hospital. Deep underground, in a windowless room about the size of a closet, sits a 6-ft-long hydraulic machine straight out of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. With the flip of a switch, it spins to life, spitting out drugs on a miniature conveyer belt. Single pills, prepackaged in foil, and bottles intermingle along the track, inching toward the end, where they are each individually bar-coded. The machine is a central part of a new hospital-wide system that is so complex it requires a multimillion-dollar budget to institute . . .