The implementation of Electronic Health Records (EHR) comes out as a fundamental objective towards the realization and achievement of quality healthcare. The strategies of implementing the EHR focus on collecting and sharing patients’ information through a safe electronic platform that enables all caregivers and health researchers’ access accurate health information for reasons of enhancing quality healthcare for the nation. The implementation of the EHR champions for a secure availability and transmission of patients’ health information and this concern demystifies the need for improving patients' safety (Federal Health IT Strategic Plan, 2015). However, the paper presents a comprehensive context about the EHR’s mandate, the goals of the electronic health records initiative, and the description of a strategic plan of a healthcare facility that intends to implement the EHR.
EHR Mandate
The EHR mandate entails collecting, sharing, and using the health information of patients most securely, and to improve patients' safety. In this context, the priority is accorded to patients as the sole beneficiary of the program. EHR mandate is to ensure the availability of patients' information to the most relevant and legit healthcare professionals and researchers with the purpose of improving and protecting the patients' wellbeing (Feldstein et al., 2017). The mandate of EHR also focuses on the use of technology as a technique of cost reduction for reasons of accomplishing the objective of implementing the EHR. The patients' data transmitted electronically, dwells on the need to strengthen the delivery of health records. As observed by Liao et al. (2017), the implementation of electronic health records was started by the federal government in the early 1970s with the objective of improving and securing patients' safety and their health records.
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EHR Goals
The goals of the EHR mandate include improving the accessibility and security of patients' information, protecting patients' wellbeing, reducing the cost of healthcare through the use of technology, expansion of health information technology, and strengthening healthcare delivery (Shah et al., 2016).
Description of the Facility Plan
The healthcare facility has not implemented the system of electronic health records initiative. Given the context of the facility plan, it is evident that the healthcare facility focuses on the protection of the interest of the patients. The interest of the patients proves quite significant for communicating the authenticity of the strategic plan based on the fact that the wellbeing and safety of the patient take center stage. Patients' health records that are considered highly confidential are heavily protected through the establishment of a highly secure and sophisticated network infrastructure that leaves no chances of data breaching. Besides, the healthcare facility advocates for the adoption of health information technology since it is cost-effective and also ensures that patients' information is transmitted to the most relevant and legit healthcare professionals. The advancement in the most secure and interoperable health information outlines the validity of the facility's strategic plan. The healthcare facility's strategic plan also considers techniques of strengthening healthcare delivery as an effective strategy with regards to the implementation of the electronic health records initiative.
Conclusion
The need to implement EHR in the healthcare sector is inevitable and needs to be accorded the requisite attention by all upcoming healthcare facilities. The implementation of EHR supports the use of health information technology based on the fact that patients’ interests and their private health data are covered. Besides, the implementation of EHR focuses not only on the protection of confidential information but also on improving the health of the patients. Ultimately, the implementation of EHR strategies is intended to ensure easier access to patients' health records by all legit healthcare professionals for reasons for expanding health information technology programs.
References
Feldstein, D. A., Hess, R., McGinn, T., Mishuris, R. G., McCullagh, L., Smith, P. D., ... & Mann, D. (2017). Design and implementation of electronic health record integrated clinical prediction rules (iCPR): a randomized trial in diverse primary care settings. Implementation Science , 12 (1), 37.
Liao, T. V., Rabinovich, M., Abraham, P., Perez, S., DiPlotti, C., Han, J. E., ... & Honig, E. (2017). Evaluation of medication errors with implementation of electronic health record technology in the medical intensive care unit. Open Access J Clin Trials. , 9 , 31-40.
Shah, G. H., Leider, J. P., Castrucci, B. C., Williams, K. S., & Luo, H. (2016). Characteristics of local health departments associated with implementation of electronic health records and other informatics systems. Public Health Reports , 131 (2), 272-282.
The Federal Health IT Strategic Plan 2015-2020- Link http://www.healthit.gov/sites/default/files/federal-healthIT-strategic-plan-2014.pdf
