Technology has a critical impact on different spheres of life including medical providers. Continuous innovation tends to change the healthcare system. These concepts not only increase the availability of the services but also improve the quality of the provided care (Bowman, 2013). Consequently, the critical goals of this paper are to detect the most important technology requirement in the medical sphere and underline the significance of the development of healthcare information systems. Simultaneously, it is necessary to introduce one of the modifications to improve the quality of healthcare and actions that senior healthcare leadership can use to promote this technology.
The Most Significant New Technology Requirement
In the first place, I tend to believe that the Electronic Health Record (EHR) is one of the most important innovations that revolutionized the healthcare sphere (Bowman, 2013). In this case, EHR contains all required medical documentation and files that offer a clear image of the patient’s condition. It could be said that using the concepts of Health Information Technology (HIT) helps increase the quality and safety of the provided care (Bowman, 2013). The primary reason for the enhanced quality is having information in digital format, as it makes it easy to transfer with the patient to a different medical institution. This benefit minimizes the frequency of medical errors and decreases the associated costs.
Nonetheless, implementing the concepts of HIT may be associated with some challenges. High costs and the need for additional training and equipment are only several issues that have to be resolved (Boonstra, Versluis, & Vos, 2014). Consequently, before starting the implementation, it is necessary to have the required funding and budgeting plan that will help allocate resources. This matter will reduce costs and have a beneficial impact on financial performance. The next step is selecting a trusting vendor, who will help install the system that will comply with the strategy and goals of the hospital (Boonstra et al., 2014). When introducing a new EHR system, it is necessary to devote substantial attention to training, as it will minimize the frequency of errors and mistakes. Following these steps will have a beneficial impact on the financial performance and quality of the provided services.
The Basic Technology and Healthcare Information Systems
As it was mentioned earlier, the active involvement of IT continues to change the medical sphere, and HIT is one of the consequences. Apart from the beneficial intentions of this concept, the model is associated with some challenges, and keeping the integrity of IT systems in the medical institution is one of them (Boonstra et al., 2014). Today, hospitals and medical facilities not only have to focus on the effectiveness of internal communication and the quality of the provided services but also their reputation and brand image. In this case, employing Health Management Information System (HIMS) is one of the vital components of healthcare, as it collects information that can be used as a basis for the decision-making and ensures the flow of information across the departments (Sharma, Rana, Prinja, & Kumar, 2016). It could be said that this system can satisfy patients’ needs and deliver the desired outcomes.
Alas, solely relying on these concepts will not guarantee success and a competitive advantage. One of the reasons is the rapid development of technology and the need to resolve current issues with the information system. For example, over-recording and over-reporting are the most common problems that modern HIT tends to face (Sharma et al., 2016). Complying with innovative trends will help overcome them. Changes in policies and the rising importance of safety and confidentiality are other matters to consider (Bowman, 2013). Consequently, applying the concepts of innovation will help take into account consumer preferences and survive high rivalry since organizational success is dependent on the satisfaction of the patients by following the laws.
Modification to Improve the Quality of Healthcare in the Community
Apart from the importance of HIMS, not all hospitals and medical institutions have successfully implemented this innovation (Sharma et al., 2016). At the same time, many hospitals in the areas such as Virginia fail to either use these systems successfully or comply with technological improvement. Consequently, my suggestion is to offer guidance that will implement of up-to-date HIMS fast and effective. The expected outcomes will have a beneficial impact on the overall quality of healthcare by minimizing the percentage of medical errors and waiting time. At the same time, introducing this system will attempt to increase the availability of healthcare to the different groups of population and make it easily accessible.
One of the bright examples of the hospitals which were able to integrate IT into medical services successfully was DocTalker Family Medicine (Herrick, Gorman, & Goodman, 2012). In this case, this medical institution not only enhanced its financial performance but also was able to cultivate the concepts of patient-centered care. The entire work system was organized differently, and this aspect helped the practitioners and management of the hospital implement HIMS effectively and revolutionize the principles of service management in the healthcare industry. Based on the factors depicted above, it could be said that using this medical facility as an example will help achieve the desired organizational goals and build trusting relationships with the customers. Consequently, this innovation will have a positive impact on the community and the effectiveness of local healthcare.
Senior Healthcare Leadership and Technology
Apart from underlining a substantial role of technological development in healthcare, one cannot underestimate the active involvement of leaders in this process. In this case, along with implementing HIMS, senior management has to focus on the needs of the local community. In this instance, as was mentioned earlier, one of the major problems is the low availability of healthcare. Consequently, offering free services, volunteer help, and using social media channels will help inform the audience about the existing opportunities. This marketing instrument (Facebook group or website) can also be discovered as a source to collect information about customer preferences concerning healthcare and used technology.
It remains apparent that the suggested actions will have a positive effect on the local community. In the first place, using the proposed strategy will help the citizens get access to healthcare with the help of technology. It will broaden a limited scope of current HIMS while making it patient-driven. At the same time, this matter has an advantageous impact on the quality of healthcare and its safety (Boonstra et al., 2014). Overall, it could be said that implementing this system together with social media will help the hospital promote patient-centered care and create a positive image.
References
Boonstra, A., Versluis, A., & Vos, J. (2014). Implementing electronic health records in hospitals: A systematic literature review. Health Services Research, 14(1), 1-24.
Bowman, C. (2013). Impact of electronic health record systems on information’s integrity: Quality and safety implications. Perspectives in Health Information Management, 10(1), 1-15.
Herrick, D., Gorman, L., & Goodman, J. (2012). Health information technology: Benefits and problems. Web.
Sharma, A., Rana, S., Prinja, S., & Kumar, R. (2016). Quality of healthcare health management information system for maternal & child health care in Haryana state, India. PLoS One, 11(2), 4-15.