Part 1
The advent of technology has significantly changed the healthcare industry. The invention of the electronic health record (E.H.R) sought to replace the traditional patient's paper chart. Unlike the former, the EHRs are patient-centered and real-time records that make information instantly available for the authorized users. However, despite the efficiency of any technology, it must be associated with an air of negativity. For instance, one of the most common complains launched when it comes to EHR is that providers are excessively focusing too much on the computer screen instead of the patient. The physician-patient relationship is one of the most important factors to consider in leveraging effective treatment. However, the EHR has come with a computer system has considerably taken away much time away from the patient (Palabindala, Pamarthy, & Jonnalagadda, 2016). As such, this has resulted in an inefficient patient encounter since physicians use more time in entering extraneous data without considering direct patient interaction.
As such, patient care has significantly suffered due to the ever-deteriorating relationship between the patient and the physician. Each patient is unique and as such, requires special attention from the healthcare provider. Most importantly, without the exchange of verbal cues such as hand gestures and facial expression during the physician-patient interaction, the healthcare provider lacks the necessary prerequisites to determine the problem that the patient faces (Palabindala, Pamarthy, & Jonnalagadda, 2016). The EHR comes with various cumbersome interfaces which by the time the physician finishes; they can hardly have enough time to assess the patient holistically. Although it is true that the EHR technology has diminished patient care, it remains essential to evaluate the source of the problem. People blame several aspects for the reduced patient time that came with the EHR including inadequate training and a lack of an efficient design. However, the nature of computer charting plays the most significant role.
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In proving that the nature of computer charting was responsible for the reduced patient time, Northwestern University conducted research. The study found out that "physicians who use paper charts spend about 9% of an appointment looking at them (patient). However, doctors using EHRs spend significantly more time with their eyes on a computer screen; about one-third of the appointment time" (Manca, 2015). With EHR comes the demand to attend to the patient and also key in some of the information they are providing. Charting requires not only maintaining eye contact with the computer but also concentrating on ensuring that persons feed the right information into the computer. Therefore, even with training or changing the computer system design, the time given to the patient will reduce since the physician needs to concentrate on entering the information to the computer system. Also, the process can be excessively cumbersome causing physician burnout and a lack of efficiency in patient management.
The process of charting consists of clicking boxes in a bid to enter the patient information. However, this comes with limitations because the boxes clicked have rigid descriptions that might not capture the actual condition or information provided by the patient. Since they are less descriptive, the boxes can be inefficient in case of a lawsuit.
Part 2
Apart from the health data described in the textbook, health surveys also form an essential part of health information. People collect health surveys in a bid to map the population health accurately. Most specifically, physicians primarily get the information from the national survey of some of the most chronic conditions in an effort give an outlook on the prevalence estimates. Health survey is health data collected primarily for research purposes hence making it widely accessible by many organizations (DHS, 2013). There are several reasons why it remains vital to track the health survey data. First, people can use the data for public health reasons by determining the rates of prevalence, morbidity, and mortality among others. It is also important to track the health survey because it provides the basis for clinical trials for drugs and other treatment interventions. Most fundamentally, it tracks the health situation of different groups including the children, women, adults, and older adults thus providing a more differential health outlook.
The Center for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC) is an example of an organization that keeps track of this data. The primary aim of the CDC "is to protect public health and safety through the control and prevention of disease, injury, and disability in the US and internationally" (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). The CDC thrives on research in various areas such as infectious disease, environmental health, nutrition, injury prevention, and health promotion among others. However, it remains fundamental to note that since it is an international body that needs to capture the health situation of virtually the entire world, it cannot conduct such research. Therefore, it must track data from a health survey conducted by hospitals and other healthcare institutions. After receiving the data, the CDC processes it by further researching to ascertain its veracity. The CDC, therefore, continues to keep an eye on the health data to ensure that it gives the direction of drug efficiency, public health measures, and new treatment strategies for infectious and the non-infectious diseases.
Just like any other type of data, tracking the health survey comes with its ethical implications. It is important to remember that health surveys data from human beings who are alive and exist in their respective society. Most fundamentally, the surveys involve the acquisition of vital data including their names, disease suffering, and location among others. In any case, physicians reveal such information to the public; it shall have gone against the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) on privacy. Some health surveys can involve a single or two subjects with well-captured bio information. When an organization such as the CDC tracks and captures the information, it can be tempted to display it to the public in a bid to maintain the authenticity. However, this goes against the ethical principles of privacy and can amount to serious legal actions against the particular organizations as a result of the exposure it has meted on the subjects.
Part 3
As earlier noted, technology has revolutionized the way medical practitioners handle health information today. It has therefore led to the emergence of various companies and software in a bid to protect health information by the HIPAA laws. In my project, the focus was on the EPIC system, arguably the largest health information technology used by hospitals in the US to access, organize, share, and store electronic medical records. The EPIC system remains in tandem with the need to create a private and electronic health records and guarantees safety. As such, this has contributed to its full usage across the country. The project is relevant to this class for several reasons. First, the EPIC system represents one of the technological advancements that companies have leveraged to ensure the safety and privacy of patient information. Secondly, it follows the principles of the EHR in that it enables storage and sharing of information by authorized bodies in improving patient condition.
Personally, the project is essential to me for several reasons. Understanding the EPIC system and the way it works is the first step in appreciating the role of modern technology in shaping health record privacy. Secondly, as an individual pursuing a course in health records, knowledge of the trends of health information storage and sharing remains fundamental to my success as a professional. It has also assisted me in perceiving how far the health industry has come and the far it aims to go as regards protecting patient critical information. Lastly, the project on the EPIC system has leveraged my position to appreciate how hospitals and healthcare facilities are hell-bent to remain mindful of federal and state laws concerning confidentiality of health records and the broader importance it has as regards to ethics of healthcare.
The most appropriate theory that could be used to represent the EPIC systems is the information theory. According to the concept, information is the knowledge that people can use for a particular reason. Information enhances communication which involves the exchange of specific information. Some of the characteristics of information include efficiency, reliability, and security. Efficiency means that it lacks irrelevance and redundancy. Reliability, on the other hand, shows that the information can be believed and trusted and lastly, security means the overall safety. Most importantly, the theory cuts across the use of mathematics, computer science, statistics, and physics among other disciplines (Hebda, Czar, & Mascara, 2019). Therefore, from this description, the EPIC system qualifies to a greater extent. First, it meets the three characteristics of information including enhancing efficiency, reliability, and safety. Through the system, patient information is keyed in and shared with immense efficiency and its reliability draws from the fact that the patient can access whenever they deem fit. Thirdly, it guarantees safety in tandem with the HIPAA laws. The information theory also incorporates a wide array of disciplines such as computer studies, statistics, and information technology. Similarly, the EPIC system is an integrated computer system including various output and input devices that receive statistics in the form of patient health data (Silow-Carroll, Edwards, & Rodin, 2012).
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2015). USA. Classification of Diseases, Functioning, and Disability. http://www. CDC. gov/nchs/icd/icd10cm. htm (: 20.09. 2014).
DHS, M. (2013). Demographic and health surveys. Calverton: Measure DHS.
Hebda, T., Czar, P., & Mascara, C. (2019). Handbook of informatics for nurses and health care professionals (pp. 120-121). Pearson Prentice Hall.
Manca, D. P. (2015). Do electronic medical records improve quality of care? Yes. Canadian Family Physician, 61(10), 846-847.
Palabindala, V., Pamarthy, A., & Jonnalagadda, N. R. (2016). Adoption of electronic health records and barriers. Journal of community hospital internal medicine perspectives, 6(5), 32643.
Silow-Carroll, S., Edwards, J. N., & Rodin, D. (2012). Using electronic health records to improve quality and efficiency: the experiences of leading hospitals. Issue Brief (Commonw Fund), 17(1), 40.
