Investment in infection-control technology is moving off the back burner as U.S. hospitals say they're not prepared to treat a deadly infection like Ebola, according to an article on the Fierce Health IT website.
Seventy-two percent of hospital leaders surveyed say infection-control (IC) software will move to their "must-have" list for 2015, the article said.
The Black Book August survey's findings included:
• Fewer than half of U.S. hospitals have even one negative pressure isolation room to isolate an Ebola patient
• Less than 8 percent of hospitals conducted emergency preparedness drills for biological disease outbreaks in the past 12 months
• Hospitals have supply problems
Eighty-two percent of those with electronic health record systems said they delayed purchasing IC software, waiting for their vendors to come up with add-on modules and support, according to the article.
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