Jessica Zeppa's death was not a result of fragmentation of the technology infrastructure. She died because of poor medical judgment ("Improving health information technology is a life or death matter," Dec. 4).
These days, the art of the medical history and physical examination is often lost due to over-reliance on technology. Health care providers stare at screens and read-outs but fail to look, interact, see and talk to the patient.
Yes, machines need to "talk" better to each other. But we need to make sure that health care providers also talk and listen better to their patients. Technology can cut down on errors, but machines cannot replace the proper medical care that can only come from interacting with the patient.
Dr. Kathy J. Helzlsouer, Baltimore