Analysis of Healthcare Technology: Telehealth - Essay Example

"Analysis of Healthcare Technology: Telehealth" is a perfect example of a paper on the health system. Just like the name suggests, telehealth is the use of new technology in health care. Over the years, more so in the twentieth and twenty-first century, technology has increased its application globally and, more specifically, in the health care sector. Telehealth is a combination of telemedicine and telecare. It refers to the exchange and transfer of medical information between two different sites or between the patient and physicians, usually in different physical locations supporting the long-distance clinical health care (Serper & Volk, 2018).

According to the American Telemedicine Association, Telehealth refers to the exchange and transmission of still images, Patients portals, patient’s consultation through video conferencing, remote control and patient monitoring of the vital signs, patient-focused wireless application, continuing medical education, and the nursing call centers (Telemedicine Association, 2018). Typically, telehealth delivery techniques include networked programs that link tertiary medical centers to outlying centers and clinics in rural areas, home phone-video connections, point-to-point connections to hospitals and clinics, web-based e-health service pages, and home monitoring links (Kruse et al., 2017). The existence of telehealth can be dated back to the 1960s, with its earliest application being the remote monitoring of the astronauts' physiological parameters.

Question 2: Give the pros (advantages) and cons (disadvantages) of the chosen technology.As an embraced technology that has been in use for more than half a century, and like any other technology, telehealth has shown both advantages and disadvantages in its application. One of the benefits of telehealth is it provides opportunities and several other platforms to improve the quality of healthcare and reach several other people (Telemedicine Association, 2018). These platforms offer the platforms to make health care better coordinated, more efficient, and closer to home.

Besides the increase in efficiency, telehealth saves on time and cost. One keeps on time they would have taken traveling to see the doctor, and the money they would have spent as well (Telemedicine Association, 2018). More so one does not require to take time off their doctors as they can interact remotely with their service provider during their breaks and at any location even from their office (Telemedicine Association, 2018).Moreover, the health specialist is often few, and they may be located in far off locations from their patient (Telemedicine Association, 2018).

Telehealth makes it easier for the patients to succeed in the best healthcare rather than the closest. Lastly, telehealth reduces the chance of acquiring new illnesses after visiting the hospital (Telemedicine Association, 2018). For example, with a global pandemic that is easily spread through contact, telehealth ensures no physical contact and reduces the chance of contracting other diseases from the hospitals.However, despite all its advantages, telehealth has its disadvantages as well. Telehealth runs a risk of fragmenting health care by leaving gaps in the care, use of inappropriate medication, overuse of the medical care, or the unnecessary and overlapping of care (Telemedicine Association, 2018).

telehealth may be limited by the ability to pay for them and the lack of reimbursement by the insurance in some states. More so, the technology may not be available to all, especially in areas with no or limited internet, and may also be affected by mobile devices (Telemedicine Association, 2018). Question 3: Explain why the particular chosen technology is the right business decision.Telehealth will ensure the effective running of the health care services in the hospital. More so, it will ease up, and link services on all the set up facilities under the physician.

Also, The physician can attend to patients in all facilities without making physical appearances in them. More so, the physician can reach their patients remotely if and when they cannot reach the health facility (Telemedicine Association, 2018). Lastly, the physician can use telehealth to instruct the nurses on the procedures to run or how to take care of the patient if the patient is in critical condition and cannot be moved from one facility to another.Question 4: Explained how the selected technology facilitates effective communication.

Telehealth ensures effective communication. It allows the patient to continually communicate with their physician on any development happening in connection to their health without waiting for their next appointment (Telemedicine Association, 2018). More so, the physician can ensure constant communication in case of an emergency or natural disaster in situations where their physical appearance is not possible. Question 5: Include and discuss at least one paragraph with a visual representation of the workflow/communication process using your selected technology.

The image below shows the communication flow in telehealth. Telehealth allows communication between the health care professions with their colleagues and their patients as well. The patient can access their healthcare profession directly through a phone call or a video call (Telemedicine Association, 2018). The patient can also access the healthcare profession through the administrative assistant or the IT department via emails, mail, or even phone calls or remote access. The physician can access the patient through the same channels as well.

Moreover, the physician can access the patient's information from the primary care practitioner or the endocrinologist via fax, phone call, mail, email, web CSS, or video call (Telemedicine Association, 2018).(Kaufman et al., 2009)