The effect of digital hospital systems on the mental workload and tendencies to medical error of nurses

The aim of this study is to compare the mental workload of nurses working in various units with and without digital hospital systems and their tendency to medical error. Data were obtained from nurses working in Internal Medicine departments of Adiyaman University Education and Research Hospital, Kahta State Hospital, Besni State Hospital and Golbasi State Hospital between March and April 2019. The Personal Information Form, the NASA-TLX Scale, and the Medical Error Tendency Scale were used in the study. The mean scores for the scales were obtained and t test and variance analysis were used for independent samples to compare these scores according to the use of digital hospital systems. The data obtained by the questionnaire were analyzed with SPSS 22.0 program. The sub-dimensions and overall score of the medical error tendency scale differed according to the use of digital hospital systems (p<0.05). According to this, the mean scores of the group using digital hospital systems were found to be higher in all sub-dimensions and overall scale compared to those who did not use this system. Mental workload differs statistically according to the use of digital hospital systems (p<0.05). According to this, the mental workload of the group using digital hospital systems was found to be lower than those who did not use this system. In addition, physical workload, temporal workload, effort, performance and discomfort level do not differ statistically according to the use of digital hospital systems (p>0.05). As a result of the research, the use of digital hospital systems, nurses both relieve the mental workload and decrease the tendency of nurses to medical errors. KEYWORDS: Digital hospital, mental workload, medical error, nursing, hospital