One thing I would like to see in the healthcare technology industry is the creation of a national patient identifier.  A national patient identifier would enable patient and providers continuity of accessing a complete medical record.  The benefits to both providers and patients are numerous and of great value.  Patients would be more engaged in their medical decisions and have access to their complete record in one place.  With a patient’s medical records in one place, providers would have the necessary information needed for care decisions.  Additionally, with less waste, the cost of healthcare would decrease.  With blockchain technology, it seems that idea is becoming closer to a reality.  Another great encouragement for this concept is that Congress has allowed HHS to assist the private sector in its development as part of its 2017 Omnibus spending bill (Monica, 2017).

By far the top two benefits, in my opinion, of informatics is access and efficiency.  Being able to access the Internet for research provides multiple opportunities for providers, patients, and healthcare organizations.  Access is inclusive of networks to third party applications and software which offers convenience and efficiency in today’s fast paced world.  

I utilize patient portals, which each have a secure messaging functionality embedded in the application.  Since each of my healthcare providers are on different EMRs, I have three different patient portals that I need to manage username and passwords.  While it is convenient to have easy access to my information, it would be much more beneficial if it was all in one application.  Also, whenever I need to send labs from one provider to the next I need to log onto on application and then electronically send to the other provider.  There is no direct line or connection from one application to the next, unfortunately.

Reference

Monica, K. (2017). National patient identifier gains Congressional support. Retrieved from https://ehrintelligence.com/news/national-patient-identifier-gains-congressional-support

Wolters Kluwer.

 2. There are a vast array of benefits of Informatics – What
are your top 2 and why?
The top benefit I see for the field of informatics is improved patient safety. Patient safety should be one of the top goals for any nurse, so I hope to see this on other nurses' answers as well. 

The second-best benefit of informatics would be improved nursing efficiency. Sewell (2016) notes, “informatics will improve documentation and, when properly implemented, not increase the time spent in documentation,” (p. 15). Being efficient and saving time really matter to me, I don't have time to waste!

 3. Kluwer (2016) states that as of 2010 <10% of consumers
were utilizing their patient portals and/or email communications to their
provider. Do you utilize either?  If so why/why not? I utilize my MyChart quite frequently. This is a patient portal system in which I can communicate directly with my providers/their nurses. I think it's wonderful to be able to communicate with the nurses and provider so quickly and efficiently. I don’t have to waste anyone’s time for an office visit, or telephone call (no phone tag!!). 

I also use MyChart daily to communicate with my patients. There is no way we could accommodate the needs of our patients without MyChart!! My provider can talk to and treat her patients immediately utilizing MyChart. This is extremely beneficial to patients that are experiencing acute flares and need treatment urgently. It is also helpful because urgent clinic appointments are simply not available in our specialty care clinic. Through MyChart, patients can speak directly with the provider, who can order labs and provide treatment, all without actually "seeing” the patient.

Reference:

 

Sewell, J. (2016). Informatics and nursing: Opportunities and challenges (5th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.

 

 

I would like to express my appreciation for your post.  As stated in your presentation, information technology has become a crucial component in healthcare.  The benefit of using this technology has impacted the delivery of patient care.  Unfortunately, the risk that is associated with using this technology forces the healthcare organizations to established security measures in order to protect the patients’ electronic medical record information.  In the case of patients that have multiple providers who may work in different healthcare organizations, the inability to share the electronic medical record system information among these providers due to the security measures established by each institution, still presents a threat to safe patient care.  Consequently, in the future of healthcare information technology it would be of immense contribution to have a national electronic medical record system.  As stated by Ozair, Jamshed, Sharma and Aggarwal (2015), “Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) capacities must be maximized in order to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of healthcare and healthcare delivery systems” (p. 76). 

There are many positive contributions that information technology (informatics) has made to the delivery of patient care.  One of the major benefits of using the electronic medical record system is the easy access to the patient information within the specific healthcare organization.  The other component of informatics that is beneficial to patient care is the ability to connect the organization’s electronic medical record system with the patient’s pharmacy.  This allows the provider the ability to prevent duplication of prescription medication such as narcotics.  It also allows the nursing team to gather the accurate information regarding the medications the patient actually takes on a regular basis.

 

In my case, the Electronic Medical Record system patient portal use by my institution allows me to effectively communicate with my healthcare providers.  The patient portal system gives me the ability to send medical concerns questions to my healthcare providers, request appointments, receive test results among many other beneficial functions.  I can access the information within my patient portal from any electronic device by logging in with my password.  According to Sewell (2016), “patient portals provide patients access to their data” (P. 192).  This function allows me to share important test results with other providers, who do not work for the institution and do not have access to my Electronic Medical Record information. 

 

References

 

Jamshed, N., Ozair, F., Sharma, A., & Aggarwal, P. (2015). Ethical issues in electronic health records: A general overview. Perspectives in Clinical Research, 6(2), 73. doi:10.4103/2229-3485.153997

 

Sewell, J. (2016). Informatics benefits for the consumer. In Informatics and Nursing: Opportunities and Challenges (5th ed., pp. 187-197). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.

2.     The top two benefits of informatics are the improvement of communication between healthcare teams and patients, and the increased engagement of patients in their health planning. Electronic communication via personal chart access and an email style messaging system can allow patients and providers to communicate at their convenience. Additionally, patients who sign up for access to their charts can look up diagnoses, lab results, etc. that keep them informed about their current health status. From this they may search the internet additionally for more information. It can be helpful for patients who are overwhelmed at visits and forget what they were told by their providers. In the case of the PACU where I work, we provide printed discharge instructions, and verbally review them with the patient and family member. However, many family members forget the instructions after they leave the hospital. In the event that the paper copy of instructions are lost, a digital copy is available on their MyChart account. 

3.     I think patient engagement will increase as more proficient technology users age. I do have access to my chart and access it after a visit. I find the access to labwork most helpful. 

PA: Walters Kluwer.

Thanks.

1. Knowing what you know about technology and healthcare and incorporating your past experience as an RN. What would you like to see (technology wise) that would impact healthcare?

I constantly find myself feeling like “it shouldn’t be this difficult” with all of the capabilities in the world today, it really shouldn’t.  I know that SyFi is one thing, but really, Dr. McCoy (Star Trek) had it easy.  He had the interoperability and he had the benefit of instant access to information, but he was also able to give his patients the knowledge that they needed to understand what was happening to them.  I would actually like it if we incorporated more biometrics into healthcare.  It would take away the need for a national identification number, it would ensure that you wouldn’t have to remember 4000 passwords (my current issue with computers) and it is totally unique to the user.  

In my ideal world-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZjWEVkDrHY 
I attached this at the bottom.
 2. There are a vast array of benefits of Informatics – What are your top 2 and why?

Oh, one of my favorite benefits is that it reduced paperwork, however, institutions are convinced that they need paper!  We utilize Epic, but we are still inundated with paper; there is a soft chart for each patient on the floors and it drives me crazy.  There are so many features of EHRs that I don’t think our institution connects with them all.  In my opinion there doesn’t need to be a soft chart, data received in the paper form can be scanned and they become obsolete. 

The second is related to reducing unnecessary tests and procedures.  A dissatisfied patient is one that has to have multiple blood draws, one that is charged for another x-ray or scan because the images cannot be found.  I believe that being able to access your own records as well as the healthcare team is able to access them allows for the healthcare team to be engaged.  It ensures that you know what has happened, what your results are and what the treatment plan is.  However, it also ensures that you know you have already had a procedure, test, or scan.  Perhaps in the past, you didn’t recall when you had your last dental x-rays, with information technology, and the ability to communicate data, my current dentist knows that it is too soon to re-take x-rays and therefore, decreases my exposure to radiation.         
 3. Kluwer (2016) states that as of 2010 <10% of consumers were utilizing their patient portals and/or email communications to their provider. Do you utilize either?  If so why/why not?  

Yes, access to the patient portal is pivotal to having an interactive role in your own healthcare.  I have accessed mine to retrieve records, review data related to lab results and communicated back and forth through e-mail with my provider.  This particular function ensures that I do not miss appointments, that I don’t have to actually go into the office for refills and that I can have direct access to my provider should something need addressing.

Sewell, J. (2016). Informatics and nursing: Opportunities and challenges (5th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.

The video you posted titled “Healthcare it trends,” was engaging, clear and concise.  In a way, it is exiting to see the future of healthcare information technology.  On the other hand, it’s scary to see the possible replacement of human direct care in a field that currently makes much emphasis on patient centered holistic care.  One reality is that technology can never replace the care a human being can provide from one another.  The human touch in healthcare is an essential component of patient care.  This video has pointed out a future of healthcare that many of us in this field await with excitement and concerns.

 

Even though, as some healthcare providers may not agree fully with all the technological advances for improving patient care, the reality is that such changes are inevitable and fast approaching in this field.  It is important to mention the many positive influences healthcare information technology advancements have made to the delivery of safe, patient engaged care.  As demonstrated in this video, thanks to the advancement of healthcare innovations there has been an increase in patient engagement to be active participants in their healthcare decision making process.  This has contributed to the increase investment of healthcare organizations on improving their technology in order to attract patients to their services.  In one of the slides presentation the video mentions the future development of Virtual Nursing Assistant.  This is a very interesting concept that years ago might have been perceived as too far-fetched, but with the current evolving trends in healthcare technology, not too distant in the future it may become a reality.  As stated by Sewell (2016), “information technology (IT) continues to change the face of healthcare” (p. 188).

 

References

 

Sewell, J. (2016). Informatics benefits for the consumer. In Informatics and Nursing: Opportunities and Challenges (5th ed., pp. 187-197). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.