Health Informatics, Research Paper Example

Challenges

Latest technology in information systems improves the ability to promote the health equity challenges. Improper treatment of patients can lead to loss of life. Lots of patients lost their life due to late detection of the disease or being treated late. The integration of information technology is not up to mark due to low returns of revenue on the systems that are installed. Overhead of maintenance cost of these health care systems is also difficult to manage due to reduced funding. As there are numerous advantages for health integrated with health IT, there are some challenges as well. The prospective to control the technology in order to transform Americans age is quite genuine. In fact, in the coming years several legal and social aspects should be taken under consideration in order to understand clearly about long-term health. The implementing cost of this technology limits its deployment and consumption widely. As a result, the number of American patients pays heavily to the health insurance as, well as to the health care professionals without any endorsement of improved care or protective care. Hence, the insurer has realized that by implementing the latest technology an enhanced care management as well as, reduced cost can be obtained. On the contrary, implementing cost of latest technology must be defaulted to the patients or the service providers. Moreover, technology associated with health such as ventilators, monitoring devices and wheelchairs are manufactured and designed to sustain or improve the life of the patient. Apart from these advantages, they can also result in stigmatization and social exclusion in the patients (Gibson, Upshur, Young, & McKeever, 2007).

The implementation of latest technologies such as, an Electronic Health Record (EHR) in a nursing home can be expensive. In addition, it depends upon the several factors such as the product, the size of the nursing home and the functionalities of the system. However, cost related to the system upgrades and ongoing operational cost is high even after paying the initial cost. The pass on hospital or any health care provider charge the facility cost from the patients in order to provide the information in the community. Likewise, an additional cost is charged with the patients using the full facilities in the form of membership fee. However, the cost related to the EHRs will lower down as the cloud computing is developing as a result; electronic systems will become more affordable. The tele-health technology also needs a huge investment in the beginning whereas, health organizations such as, Medicare encourage the patients to utilize tele-health services. The remote monitoring service is only provided by tele-health as the element of their treatment procedure. In addition, tele-health technology is more effective and cost saving as compare to the other health providers. Although, the entire Medicare authorized organizations do not use this technology. This is because the devices for remote monitoring are much expensive. The cost related to acquiring these devices is much higher due to the advancement in technologies for example the potential of Smartphones and the competition in many organizations. The CMS have verified that the cost related to the implementation of latest technologies can be restored.

In previous years computer systems and the technologies were only used for limited purposes in long-term health care. However, in modern days technology related to the long-term health care must be managed properly for optimal use of resources and technology. The cost related to the implementation must be managed carefully in order to facilitate patients, clients and other who needs care or support. An additional cost is required in order to hire staff members that can maintain and use the technology and helps to provide better health care services to the patients.

Governance, Privacy and Legal Issues

In order to minimize the cost of common administrative transactions, health plans, made the U.S congress optimistic to create an administrative outline of precise transactions related to electronic health data. (Chaikind, 2004) The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 produced inducements for public and private partnerships to expand and deploy standards in order to standardize data related to health care in electronic administrative transactions related to health and standards for security and privacy of independently exclusive health information. The adaptation of HIPAA standards developed by accredited standards developing organizations clearly hold the guarantee led by US government. The transactions elected by Congress, the process of selecting the principles in the Department of Human Services and Health, the doctrine that steered these selections, and the actual selections, are presented. A prosperous joint venture for administrative health data standards may cover the way for accomplishment of data standards in clinical health and their associated application, in computerized patient record systems.

In order to address the security issues, professionalism is required in terms of design and development, and acquisition and maintenance while operating electronic health records. However, health professional shares their own code of ethics which is not effective in terms of Health Information Professionals (HIPS). In order to minimize these issues, the International Medical Informatics Association is in the phase of acclimatizing a suitable code of ethics (Mennerat, 2002). Furthermore, the expectations from this code are as follows:

• Privacy of information and character
• Ingenuousness
• Security
• Accessibility
• Justifiable violation
• Slightest invasive Alterative
• Responsibility

Technical Issues

Apart from the code of ethics, principle concerns are also related to the transmission of these digital records over the computerized network. Moreover, technical and organized measures are required when the computerized data travels on the network. In order to address the issues on the revolutionary advanced technology, expertise for the implementation cost and risk of dealing with the processed data is required. In terms of healthcare systems, it is not mandatory that the individual employing system will only operate and process the data in the system. The instructions can be passed for a processor who will access the system to process health care records. However, the processor must have adequate assurance of security. Moreover, the instructor must ensure strict compliance with the security requirements while passing instructions to the processor. Furthermore, a written contract is essential for only fulfilling instructions from a responsible instructor or senior healthcare professional. Besides, the key standards includes classification of security and safeguard profiles, passwords, algorithms for digital signatures, communication related to healthcare in a secure environment and health informatics.

References

Chaikind, H. R. (2004). The health insurance portability and accountability ACT (hipaa): Overview and analyses Novinka Books.

Gibson, B. E., Upshur, R. E. G., Young, N. L., & McKeever, P. (2007). Disability, technology, and place: Social and ethical implications of long-term dependency on medical devices. Ethics, Place & Environment, 10(1), 7-28. doi: 10.1080/13668790601150685

Mennerat, F. (2002). Electronic health records and communication for better heath care: Proceedings of EuroRec ’01 Ios PressInc.