Developing Information Technology to Support Clinical Thinking During Safety-Critical Tasks

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Every year, some 700 Canadians die from preventable adverse drug events. These adverse drug events can in large part be prevented using technological solutions. However, existing technological solutions are deficient in their ability to support clinical reasoning and problem solving. As such, the overarching goal of this research program is to identify and model the cognitive processes involved in critical thought and use this knowledge in the design of clinical Information Technology (IT) support systems to ultimately decrease medication error rates. Our unique scientific approach is to develop a universal platform of cognitive aids that address different task types and error types that could be applied to different clinical technologies. A significant portion of this work will be targeted at determining how task variables such as complexity (e.g., simple procedural tasks vs. complex adaptive problem solving tasks) and familiarity (e.g., routine tasks vs. unexpected tasks) influence how people reason and problem solve. This research area is not very well developed yet it is fundamental to informing the design of clinical IT support systems that are easier to use, less likely to lead to commission of an error, and improve overall ability to provide assistance when face with unexpected situations. This work is expected to contribute to the field of natural science and engineering in several ways, including the development of new IT system designs, theoretical and empirical models that explain how people structure their knowledge, reason, and problem-solve when performing safety-critical tasks. Moreover, this research program offers a unique opportunity for the training of graduate students in a multidisciplinary setting spanning the health and engineering fields.