ECG devices interoperability in hospital environment: clinical experience

The clinical use of information systems is now widely accepted in hospital departments. Among diagnostic instrumental examinations the electrocardiogram is the most popular diagnostic procedure in hospitals and outpatient points of care and its integration in Hospital Information System (HIS) is mandatory. We report our experience in integrating ECG devices in the clinical HIS of an advanced Health Care Center for.pulmonaty and cardiovascular disease. In the last five years the Electronic Medical Record was daily used and automatically filled, as much as possible, by diagnostic instrumentation. Electrocardiogram was the last diagnostic procedure to be integrated; this depended both by technical problems and by functional variables. Solutions adopted are the results of technical choices for an optimal integration of ECG devices into Electronic Medical Record and the guidelines and advices suggesied by doctors and nurses. One year validation takes into account the real bedside process of ECG acquisition in clinical ward or laboratories, following the instrumentation requirements as expected by the users. On the basis of our experience we conclude that the commercial ECG device integration is far to be reached and it is one of the most challenge problems in a hospital environment