ECRI’s top 10 tech hazards for 2018, security gaps, dirty scopes make the list

The ECRI Institute has identified the top 10 health technology hazards for 2018, which includes cybersecurity threats, endoscope reprocessing challenges, bed and stretcher mattress contamination, secondary alarm notification systems, medical device cleaning methods, electrosurgical electrode pencil handling, digital imaging tools to control radiation, bar-coded medication system workarounds, networked medical devices and information systems, and enteral feeding tubing errors. The Institute recommends various solutions and precautions to minimize these hazards and prevent patient harm.