The CPOE systems that have been developed to help doctors make better decisions still face many obstacles and it is these obstacles that are preventing CPOE systems from being a standard in hospitals around the nation. It is the same technology designed to aid hospitals in helping patients that is also the problem. At the University of Pennsylvania the system created errors and scattered patient data drug-ordering forms across different computer windows. This increased the chances of physicians ordering the wrong medications. It is because of these types of problems that still exist in the CPOE systems that many healthcare facilities are willing to invest in these systems. These systems also do not come at a cheap price. CPOE systems cost $8 to $12 and it is that price tag that hospitals see over any benefits the system may provide. Hospitals do not want to invest so much money in a system that still has problems and does not have an immediate return on the investment. Many doctors also argue that the system is not any better than a human diagnosis. The skepticism of how much the CPOE systems can do and the high costs are the biggest obstacle to the greater implementation of the system and is the reason why only 5 to 10% of hospitals use them. If the technology was perfect and problem free, more hospitals might be willing to invest, but that is not the case.
The only way to solve the problems is to improve the CPOE systems. If the technology is better and glitches become an issue of the past, hospitals would no have problems implementing the system. Even with better technology, there will still be resistance to the extremely high cost of making the CPOE system a part of the hospital. If something can be done to make the technology cheaper to produce, the number of hospitals using CPOE systems would increase. Money is the biggest issue and unless it is dealt with, the common use of CPOE systems may never be a reality.
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