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Doctors Worried About Hardware's Infection Risks


December 1, 2007

The perceived risk of infections from using mobile computing devices is a barrier that must be overcome before more doctors will use the hardware, a new study based on interviews with about 100 physicians concludes.

Sixty-five percent of physicians interviewed by phone over a four-month period earlier this year said they are concerned about the risk of infection from using mobile computing devices at the point of care, according to Spyglass Consulting, which conducted the survey.

The Menlo Park, Calif.-based firm's study, "Healthcare Without Bounds: Point of Care Computing for Physicians," reveals that physicians believe other doctors' poor hand washing habits, multi-tasking at the bedside and ignorance about infection risk could increase the risk of such hardware, says Gregg Malkary, managing director. Most health care organizations don't have standard policies and procedures for how mobile devices should be cleaned, he notes.

"Everyone is pointing fingers as to who is responsible for cleaning mobile hardware," he says. "They also can't figure out how to get all the devices together to clean them."

Most shared mobile hardware, such as Tablet or notebook PCs, can pick up germs that reside on beds or tables in exam rooms where the devices are placed while clinicians treat patients. Other objects that clinicians come into contact with, including pens, pagers, and clipboards, also are vulnerable to acquiring germs in the same way.

But recent events, such as Medicare's announcement that it would no longer reimburse for care given as a result of hospital acquired infections after Oct. 1 and the rise of antibiotic resistant infections, are causing both clinicians and executives to take notice of just how many objects inside health care organizations carry germs, Malkary says.

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