Designing a clinical decision support system for managing and treating patients with the chief complaint of vertigo

Abstract

Background: One of the challenging issues for emergency specialists is the etiology of dizziness. Using portable software installing in the mobile cell can help the clinicians to reduce the effects of confounders in emergency treatment of patients. Methods: This study was conducted in 2017 in the Department of Emergency, Rasoul-e Akram hospital, Tehran, Iran. After designing the management protocol for patients with vertigo based on the literature and standards, the validity of the protocol was approved by the expert panel. A number of 190 patients with vertigo were diagnosed using two methods for treatment and management of the disease. The first group were assessed using designed clinical decision support system, and the second group were assessed using routine method. Treatment duration, maintenance duration, and the differences between the primary and the final diagnosis were compared between the groups. Findings: Differences between the primary and the final diagnosis were significant among both groups (P < 0.050). Mean treatment duration was 3.38 and 4.96 hours in the first and second groups using support system and routine methods, respectively (P < 0.001). Mean hospitalization period was significantly shorter in support system group (9.37 hours) compared to routine method group (11.17 hours) (P < 0.001). The level of physician satisfaction with the support system was average (47.9). Conclusion: Using clinical decision support system can greatly help physicians to improve the diagnosis, decrease the hospitalization period, and manage the patients with the chief complaint of vertigo much better. © 2018, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved