HIPAA and Information Technology

A standardized aesculapian scripts database can offer providers promptness in receiving pertinent materials from the perseverings chart. This documentation may entail access to the patients medical, family history, run into numbers, and any other relative to notify in case of an emergency. electronic prescribing, and sharing of reports, test results, and public wellness alerts with other entities promotes coordination of kick. Diagnostics and readings, much(prenominal) as blood pressure, and sugar, are just examples of the data that is immediately easy through the health information exchange (HIE).Physicians, hospitals, and clinics will enter these facts and figures into patient vault, the central database for the patient. Along with these recordings, patients can leave messages for the physician, and request medication refills. With the whatchamac each(prenominal)um of the automatize charting format, the doctor, and patient does not have to wait while melodic theme report s are sorted through because of misfiles, disorganized records, poor communication with staff, or typographical errors. The electronic system ensures that records are in chronological order, and that all reports are current, adequately preparing the provider for the appointment.The Detroit Medical Center, which purchased the equipment to convert its paper record format into electronic, as has been developing the process since, has produced some promising statistics. foreman Nursing Officer Patricia Natale, credits the automated application for reducing the length of prolonged admissions, and misjudgments in administering medications through the EMR-enabled medication scanning feature. The hospitals attention team affirms that the electronic filing system has already generated or so $5 in savings for the facility, and has been upgrading security for patients.This feat is accomplished by effectively supervising imperative activities conducted daily, and diminishing the occurrences of prescription inaccuracies by 75 percent, as per the current assessments, observes DMC Chief Medical Information Officer Leland Babitch, MD. Findings by The United States Institute of Medicine indicate that hospital blunders are obligated for approximately 100,000 of patient deaths a year. DMC Vice President for Quality and safety Michelle Schreiber, MD claims that the automated charting format has proven to greatly assist providers with treating patients throughout the day.The HIPAA issues that could arise are as follows. In the article in GreenvilleOnline. com website, increase Medical Identity Theft Puts Patients at Risk, Osby, (2013) cites a report issued by The U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, (2010). As a concern, health care identity theft, is in competition with the other most prominent depicted object identity crimes, claiming every tell 5 million victims in the year Osby (2013) apprises. photographic print Savage, a senior attorney for Consumers Un ion, announced that breaking into patients personal information via automated databases is a problem that is worsening in the medical office.He recognizes that electronic medical records are capable of offering advantages to the health care industry, and its patrons. However, he adds that quandary lies in the assurance of safeguarding patients sensitive materials (2012). Individually identifiable information, such as birthdates, demographics, amicable security, and edge numbers, provide an abundance of facts which prospective felons find extremely attractive to when attempting to thrust funds from hospitals, or for other monetary rewards.These illicit activities wreak massacre on the patient, in the form of erroneous invoices, which can compromise their credit, their employment, and even subject them to improper treatments, stemming from inaccurate medical documentation (Osby, 2013). The author likewise alerts that security measures fail to match the demand for electronic recor ds, data sharing, and social media and mobile technology to manage patient data, or the new uses for digital health information.Stealing is the primary offender in the medical field, impacting over 500 patients, trailed only by authorized disclosure to, or with health information, and staff oversights, and misplacing automated, or paper files (The Department Health and Human Services, 2010) GreenvilleOnline interviewed Chad Lawson, a spokesman for Spartanburg Regional, (where an information security council was comprised in 2012, to guarantee that regulations put in place to shield patient information are resilient, and dependable).During this conversation, Lawson advised that as technology grows and changes and becomes even more vital to the continuing development of improved quality, we essential promise that our efforts to keep information safe are adaptable to the closely growth of electronic medical records and other portals for speed and efficiency in patient care (2012).I believe technology in the medical records management industry is so far behind other industries primarily because of affordability, and that the cognizance of cost can outweigh the value. Although the president has allocated nearly $3 million Medicare/Medicaid bonuses to various health care establishments, including clinics, and hospitals, to aid in the transition, the expense of purchasing, and trading operations still hinder progress.Despite the positive reviews from current customers of the electronic system, less than 4 percent of facilities have followed through with conversion, having already limiting funding of many an(prenominal) a(prenominal) IT projects, The University of Michigan School Of Medicine reported. A quarter of American hospitals, already fiscally impaired by the down-spiraling economy, have upgraded only partially to automated records, or have remained with paper. Healthcare reform in general has been a political hotbed of controversy throughout several pre sidencies.The nations flunk economy, rising unemployment, terrorism, natural disasters are already on the forefront of many debates. The fiscal budget puts the squeeze on any other programs, in particular those which would most likely require enormous funding to proceed. I am of the opinion that these are some of the reasons that the push to incorporate a habitual electronic records format has been delayed, and still continues lagging behind other industries.