The Technology of Electronic Health Records - Essay Example

"The Technology of Electronic Health Records " is a remarkable example of a paper on the health system.
It is apparent that the technology of electronic health records has been contentious for a long time. There have been mixed reactions to the importance and fears of using technology. First, technology is has been argued to have numerous positive impacts on the healthcare sector. The technology has been proposed to be used in the healthcare sector to make service provision more efficient and less expensive. The technology enables fast retrieval of medical records from patients. Unlike the manual record-keeping, which is characterized by errors and time wastage, electronic health record has been devised to eliminate these shortcomings.

However, there have been concerns about the risks associated with the use of technology. For instance, since the technology involves inserting some Electronic Chips under the skin of the patient, there have been arguments that these gargets might have unverified health complications on patients. Additionally, there have been arguments that if the technology is not devised well, it may end up infringing patient’s rights especially if the access to the patient’s profile is accessed by ill-intended people through the use of other technologies that can be used to hack the patient’s profile. The current article has been cited to have good information regarding how these deliberations have been contentious.

The current article was selected because it possesses information related to the controversy of the use of EHR as the technology believed to be of great importance to the healthcare fraternity if used accordingly. At the opening of the article, the author confirms that it is true that the issue of EHR compelling, but argues that there are also contradicting issues that doctors and other stakeholders have risen (Freudenheim, 2012). For instance, even after the Obama administration allocated over 6 billion dollars for the technology’s incentives, doctors have pointed out that the technology will have to consume more resources before it can become fully applicable in all healthcare centers. Additionally, doctors have pointed out that technology brings up confusion and can be frustrating and above all dangerous.

The technology requires special attention especially because it requires computer application, which according to doctors and nurses has been time-consuming (Freudenheim, 2012). There have been arguments that the technology cannot be fully relied on because doctors have a wide variety of other work that they need to perform without the use of the record and, therefore, the technology is seen as a whole confusion in the practice.

The change of healthcare by the technology

The technology can change the healthcare sector if well researched on. For instance, since it is considered effective, it means that it can be used to reduce the backlog that has faced the sector for so long. However, there is a need to look into things that might affect their application and find solutions to the same.

The unfamiliar terms

Electronic systems are clunky- The system is sometimes viewed as being awkward

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality- it is the agency mandated to provide scientific evidence that enables healthcare to make decisions

Institute of Medicine- advises the nation on how to improve health