Nursing Informatics, Computerized Management Systems - Research Paper Example

? Nursing Informatics A report on Nursing Informatics Computerized Management Systems Computerized maintenance management systems are important since they manage and control work performance in today’s hospitals. By using computerized management systems, health care providers can compile patients’ information automatically, conduct researchers, and create medical work automatically. Technology plays a crucial role in the effective delivery of quality care. It is important to understand the selection of suitable medical technology and the management of maintaining that technology in good condition. The emerging technology such as EHR systems have significantly enabled hospitals to retrieve and store detailed patient information that has further been utilized by patients and health professionals during the patient’s hospitalization across various health settings (Tran & Taylor, 2009). With computerized maintenance management systems, Tran & Taylor (2009) argues that healthcare professionals from different health care settings can retrieve patient information without the need to inquire from the patient. The systems save time for clinicians and other health care providers in retrieving patient information, providing accurate information about the patient, and providing effective care based on the past medical records. They also increase productivity in that health professionals can easily access the patient records and further provide quality care that aligns with the patient medical record. Computerized maintenance management systems monitor patient well being and improve safety and quality health care. They also improve communication in health care providers across the globe without the need to walk miles. Through internet, most health care professionals can interact with others across health care sites and as a result, exchange information on how to improve a certain patient’s well-being. As health experts interact with other experts across the globe, patients benefit in getting quality and safety care. In this regard, technology is the key driver in improving quality, productivity, health and continuity care. Nursing Involvement in the Planning Process Nursing involvement in the planning, choice, and implementation of the systems is important. For instance, nursing involvement in the planning play a significant role of minimizing the overall health cost, thus reducing mistakes and improving health efficiency. Still, nursing involvement in the implementation of the systems help to record and retrieve patient information. By investing in health care technology, communication and coordination in health care improves. Health care providers also increase in their accountability to patients. They save time used when retrieving and recording patient information. With technology in mind, health professionals have been in a better position to compile patient medical information and access it at ease when required. In most cases, health professionals use electronic methods to compile information such as patient’s medical diagnosis, insurance information, prescription, and the effects of the treatment. With this information, a health professional can easily comprehend the patient’s progress over a span of time. Still, compiling patient information enables other health professionals to comprehend medical background of the patient despite not being familiar with the patient. The use of handheld devices by the nursing staff The use of handheld devices and computers by nurses can boost speed and competence of nursing documentation. Electronic handheld devices are importance resource tools for nurses. It allows nurses to gather information on various subjects such as drug lists and medical references. Most handheld devices such as Personal Digital Assistants (PDA) boost the quality of nursing care in the hospital setting. The PDAs is a handheld device capable of sending and receiving data, accessing the internet, and storing books with quality information. This tool increases the quality of care that nurses provide in the clinical setting. It decreases medical errors by making the relevant information available at the point of medical care. The tool has also been known to save time by increasing the accuracy of researching medical information. It allows nurses to carry textbooks right in their pockets, access information in seconds, and survey the right medical procedure at the point of care. Nurses without handheld devices often seek information from their colleagues, who may not or may provide quality advices. This may increase medical errors and reduce quality care. Medical errors may pose serious threats to patients’ safety and eventually lead to death. To deter this problem, handheld devices have the potential to minimize medication errors by providing convenient and portable source of information for healthcare providers. It is vital to note that, most medical errors occur due to lack of adequate knowledge of patients’ status or knowledge about the right medication. Handheld devices have the potential to make medical documentation more accurate and boost communication between nurses and other members in the healthcare setting. The ease of use, portability, and instant access to information makes the handheld devices appealing tools for nurses. Indeed, these tools have the potential to revolutionize the way nurses record and provide care. Security standards of data and patient confidentiality In health care organizations, physicians should have a written plan of how patients will access their medical records. Physicians should maintain a high degree of confidentiality about patients’ information. Although advancement in technology has enhanced a tremendous growth in the medical field, healthcare organizations have faced new challenges associated with the large volume of data. With this, hospitals should not only find space to store and retrieve the data. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability act (HIPAA) established by congress in 1996 provided standards that govern the security and privacy of healthcare-related data issues. The Act encouraged healthcare organizations and professionals to ensure that their electronic data system compile with HIPAA regulations. The regulations state that any health care provider or organization should maintain confidentiality and establish medical procedures for information backup and recovery. The legislation encourages physicians to have a written plan of how patients obtain medical records in the organization. The CRC data protection is the best solution that meets the challenge of information management. It is designed to manage large volumes of data across wide networks. The CRC data protection gives clinical settings the tools to improve their back-up and maintain full principles of HIPAA. It gives healthcare organizations the ability to protect their information systems in clinic or hospitals. The impact of new systems on healthcare cost Through internet, patients have been in a better position to access information in regard to their medication, treatment, and prevention strategies. Through electronic data systems, health care providers can easily record and retrieve patient information. With information on how to carry out different diagnosis being available, health care providers can minimize medical errors that increases healthcare cost. For instance, EHR systems improve the health care consistency, quality, and patient care. Still, technology improves communication among health care providers across the globe without the need to walk miles. This minimizes the healthcare cost that would be used in transportation. It is important to note that, through internet, most health care professionals can interact with others across health care sites and as a result, exchange information on how to improve a certain patient’s well-being. As health experts have interacted with others across the globe, patients have benefited in getting quality and safety care. In this regard, technology has been the key driver in improving quality, productivity, health and continuity care and reducing healthcare cost. The benefits of the new systems to nursing care delivery It is important to embrace technology since it increases medical compliance. For instance, handheld devices boost communication between health professionals and patients. Through handheld devices such as PDA, health care providers can ask patients whether they have adhered to medication prescriptions. This creates effective accountability for patient in regard to adhering to medication orders. Through other technological tools such as electronic health records, patients can interact with health care providers and this interaction provides a great opportunity for the health professional to comfort patients. Through effective communication, interaction, and accountability, patients can b comforted and encouraged to follow a doctor’s prescription. Recommendation From the ongoing discussion, it is evident that technology plays a significant role of improving communication in the health sector, which in turn increases efficiency and productivity in health care. The team should consider purchasing various systems such as PDAs to boost the quality of nursing care in the hospital setting. This system would help in gathering information. Purchasing PDAs is important since it decreases the medical errors by making information available at the point of care. The tool also saves time for nurses and increases accuracy. The tool has the ability to revolutionize the way healthcare providers’ record and provide health care. It is important to purchase mobile technology to investigate patients’ care. Mobile technology includes gadgets such as mobile internet devices that are portable, wireless, and have sensors. Mobile technology would change how people communicate in the clinical setting. This technology could be utilized to gather patients’ feedback about the services given and from staffs on what should be done to improve the clinical setting. Mobile technology may boost medication compliance. The technology may boost the understanding of post-treatment. It may be convenient for patients and the hospital to monitor double check prescription and discharge instruction. It could also improve medication accuracy as patients could be reminded about medication compliance. Mobile technology may boost the access of health information for patients and increase research capabilities for healthcare providers. Electronic health records devices would be important to nurses in accessing patients’ information, appointment, and their medications. The technology would access areas in health care that need improvement. It would evaluate where doctors are having a positive impact on their patients. When utilized in the hospital, this technology would boost care through accurate, complete, and safer information share among healthcare professionals. It would reduce waste of time for procedures, appointments, and medical access to health care facilities. For doctors, this technology would improve work efficiencies and more time on patients. Health care providers would have a chance to coordinate more efficiently with patients without having to travel in miles looking for patients’ information. The use of surveillance cameras in the hospital would assist the research to monitor the activities that take place in the hospital. This technology would monitor how health care providers treat patients and evaluate the skills used by doctors. The essence of surveillance technology is that it helps hospitals to access what is going on, on a daily basis. Specifically, this research would benefit from this research in that it would adequately access what has been going on in the hospital. Reference Tran, A., & Taylor, D. M. (2009). Medical model for hospital in the home: Effects on patient management. Australian Health Review, 33(3), 494-501. Read More