Impact of Information Technology on Service Quality of Health Care Services - Essay Example

One of the most difficult aspect of modernity is the perennial question of whether or not technological advances should be utilized or whether the inherent risks and/or dangers they pose should discourage anyone from applying them. This question pervades almost all of society; however, for purposes of this brief analysis, the researcher will consider this question with regards to healthcare providers and whether or not technological improvements with regards to patient outcomes bear a higher inherent risk or a higher inherent reward.

More specifically, the use and discussion of Smart Scanning or Quick Response Codes will be leveraged as a means of drawing inference upon this particular issue. One of the primary factors that help medical professionals improve patient outcome is with regards to the availability and possession of relevant information. Whereas it is true that healthcare professionals can impact positively upon the prognosis of a patient based upon other factors, the interaction of so many different healthcare determinants demands that in order for the improvement and accuracy of such healthcare delivery to continue to expand, it will be necessary for healthcare professionals to have access in real time to a more relevant database of patient information.

Naturally, this portends both a positive and a negative. The positive has already been stated; whereas the negative is concentric upon issues involving privacy and/or the extent/level that a healthcare professional might go to an order to save or prolong life based upon the knowledge of other relevant and pertinent healthcare information. If one considers the nature of healthcare as it has developed over the past several decades, they realized that patient information was primarily recorded by a hand written notes and charts that were Both in the office and/or beside the patient during in-hospital treatment.

Upon the introduction of computers and the ability to scan information, the use and implementation of barcodes was employed as a means of patient tracking and improving the overall level of healthcare delivery. Likewise, as computers and information systems have continued to expand over the past several years, the overall level of information that a particular healthcare professional can be aware of has exponentially expanded (Rajagopal, 2013). Moreover, the development of microchips and flash memory has created a system by which a simple scan with regards to patient history can be immediately revealed whether or not a particular pharmacological approach is amenable to the patient’s outlook these and/or other drug interactions.

This information when taken a copious amount of time previously in order to infer and required no professional to spend a great deal of time poring over the records of the individual patient. In such a way, human resource shortages within the healthcare industry can be a ameliorated simply by utilizing and leveraging technological advancement. Although this analysis has thus far been very positive with regards to the level and extent to which technology can be leveraged as a means of promoting the welfare of the individual patient, it must be stated that concerns regarding privacy and the overall vulnerability of the mainframe and network systems that house this information should serve as a primary concern.

Due to the fact that there are many individuals that seek to steal information, both as a means of blackmail and/or as a means of deriving some level of profit, the access to this information is of a critical importance. In such a way, it is the belief of this author that even though quick scanning and many other technological means The potential to positively impact upon the overall level of healthcare provision within society, they must be safeguarded thoroughly so that such an eventuality does not have the potential to exist.

Yet, rather than being fearful of the growth and technology that currently exists, a more reasonable approach would be to ensure that the patient and his/her needs are championed over the ease and/or efficiency that the medical health care provider would otherwise receive from their use. By using this as the guiding principle of whether or not such an approach should be engaged, it is still the belief of this author that the utilization of further technology within healthcare sphere only serves to benefit the needs of both the healthcare provider and the individual patient.

Reference Rajagopal, N. N. (2013). Impact of Information Technology on Service Quality of Health Care Services. Vilakshan: The XIMB Journal Of Management, 10(1), 79-96.