Electronic Medical Record

Information Technology and Education

Electronic Medical Record

John McAdory

Herzing University

NU425-7 Nursing Informatics

Professor Susan Austin

Date: 09/13/2020

Introduction

My choice for the topic Information Technology (IT) is the electronic medical record (EMR). The EMR is used to create, store, process and exchange electronic data on a patient. The purpose of the EMR is to store, input and retrieve information to help direct patient care and to share information with other healthcare personal (Williams, C. 2020). The EMR stores information using software and networks only accessible by authorized medical personnel. Nowadays most organizations require IT for smooth operation of their business. The use of information technology also supports effective management of health information across all computer systems secure transfer of data within healthcare providers, patients and payers (Mackert, Mabry-Flynn, Champlin, Donovan, & Pounders, 2016). 

History of the Electronic Medical Record

            The electronic medical record has been with us for a relatively short time. It is evident that human beings have been very quick and adaptable towards easier and faster communication technology. The key concept of the EMR is that it involves the safe storage of sensitive information through the use of computers. Before 1992 computers were already in existence and its primary use during that time was primarily complex calculations and a basic form a messaging (E-mail),(Theis, & Wong, 2017). Though there is evidence of EMR’s being used as far back as 1971 the EMR didn’t really come into age until 1992 when computers were much smaller and could hold much more information. Even in 1992 no one truly used a EMR system exclusively, most facilities used a hybrid system of paper and electronic data (Evans, R. 2016).

Patient Portal is another significant IT software used in the healthcare system which acts as a platform for easy assessment of health-related data by using any digital device. Even, the patient can have conversation with the health care professional through the online platform of Patient Portal. Nowadays, there is also use of urgent care applications with focus on providing medical help for 24/7 hours per day. This IT system adopted in the healthcare system has improved the treatment process and maximized patient satisfaction rate as they are able to get quick service. According to Mackertet al, (2016), MPI has been introduced in healthcare settings to minimize duplication on patient records and avoid inaccuracy of data, which eventually improves the treatment quality. The use of medical billing software has become an integral part of leading healthcare centers, which automatically generates medical bills of patients and manages the entire workflow. Apart from generating medical bills, MPI is also responsible for handling insurance claims and verification, payment tracking, and even sending alerts for late payment (Mackert et al, 2016). 

Benefit of the technology to organization and patient care

The use of EMR is of immense significance to the healthcare industry. There has been evidence of the importance of theEMR on treatment and patient care. The significance of the EMR has been reflected in various phases of health Education planning. According to Nimkar, (2016), information technology provides valuable assistance in data collection, development, implementationand evaluation of the health education program. Effective use of EMR by the healthcare professionals will help in improving healthcare quality and safety. It also facilitates clinical and consumers’ decision-making process in an effective manner. 

In the health-based information technology, the discussion is based on educating patients and healthcare professionals on improving their knowledge regarding the use of healthcare information systems. Some of these commonly used IT in healthcare are medical practice management system, Electronic Health Record (EHR), e-prescribing software, Remote Patient Monitoring, Master Patient Index (MPI), Medical Billing Software and Patient Portal. The use of the Medical practice management system automates the regular clerical task which eventually improves the quality of patient care. Both patient and healthcare practitioners are able to view all the patient related documents online. Similarly, the use of EHR maximizes efficiency through reducing paperwork and as a result medical errors are minimized. In the similar, e-prescribing software allows healthcare providers to send the prescriptions directly to the pharmacists without the risk of any misplacement and also get easy access to the patient’s medical history (Nimkar, 2016).

Patient Portal is another significant IT software used in the healthcare system which acts as a platform for easy assessment of health-related data by using any digital device. Even, the patient can have conversation with the health care professional through the online platform of Patient Portal. Nowadays, there is also use of urgent care applications with focus on providing medical help for 24/7 hours per day. This IT system adopted in the healthcare system has improved the treatment process and maximized patient satisfaction rate as they are able to get quick service. According to Mackertet al, (2016), MPI has been introduced in healthcare settings to minimize duplication on patient records and avoid inaccuracy of data, which eventually improves the treatment quality. The use of medical billing software has become an integral part of leading healthcare centers, which automatically generates medical bills of patients and manages the entire workflow. Apart from generating medical bills, MPI is also responsible for handling insurance claims and verification, payment tracking, and even sending alerts for late payment (Mackert et al, 2016). 

Conclusion

            Most EMR’s dont meet the needs of todays average person, to compare due to COVID-19 and social distancing most people have to still go into a hospital to be examined or to get official test results for travel or job purposes. The future is in giving patients free access to there medical records to print, view or question diagnosis, most importantly to communicate with their physician via email at anytime with a timely response. Most of EMR charting is still in paper form which is also an issue if there is malpractice or other accusations as any documentation can be lost or stolen. With a electronic document there is always a signature or initial when documenting or deleting anything in the EMR (Evans, R. 2016).

References

Mackert, M., Mabry-Flynn, A., Champlin, S., Donovan, E. E., & Pounders, K. (2016). Health literacy and health information technology adoption: the potential for a new digital divide. Journal of medical Internet research, 18(10), e264.

Nimkar, S. (2016). Promoting individual health using information technology: trends in the US health system. Health Education Journal, 75(6), 744-752.

Theis, T. N., & Wong, H. S. P. (2017). The end of moore’s law: A new beginning for information technology. Computing in Science & Engineering, 19(2), 41-50.

Evans, R.S., (2016). Electronic Health Records: Then. Now, and in the Future. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5171496/

Williams, C., & Hamadi, H., & Cummings, C. (2020). Optimizing the Cognitive Space of Nursing Work Through Electronic Medical Records: Article of the week https://prxherzing.lirn.net/MuseProxyID=mp02/MuseSessionID=6o31ykepc/MuseProtocol=https/MuseHost=ovidsp.dc2.ovid.com/