Computerized provider order entry and patient safety: A scoping review

As health systems in Canada are being modernized with the use of technologies, digital health tools are now increasingly being used to improve patient safety. Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE) is now being used in Canada and the technology may have an important impact on patient safety. The objective of this scoping review is to explore the impact of CPOE on patient safety in health care settings. Four databases were searched for studies related to CPOE and patient safety. Following title, abstract and then full text review, twelve studies were selected for further analyses. Several key themes emerged from the literature. The findings revealed several important themes: (1) the implementation of CPOE is an important aspect of patient safety, (2) comparisons of CPOE implementations across multiple sites or facilities were made, (3) the end-user experience of using CPOE was important, and (4) the evaluation of CPOE is key to establishing risk frameworks. Risk mitigation strategies and lessons for academia and industry are discussed. Overall, the scoping review revealed that although patient safety can be improved using CPOE, there is a large difference in realized impacts among healthcare systems.