Health Informatics And Population Health Management

Latour, Kathleen and Eichenwald-Maki, eds. (2009). HI300: Information Technology & Systems for Healthcare. Chicago: American Health Information Management Association

Over the past few years, we have notice a significant change in the workflow of a healthcare organization. This change is caused by the technological advancements of Health Information Technology (HIT). One of the many technological advancements of HIT is the Electronic Health Record (EHR). Electronic health records are a patient’s paper chart in a digital format. It always contains real time information and can be easily accessible. With EHR put into act, it has the ability to electronically view and share a patient’s medical history, past and current medications, immunization dates, any diagnoses or allergies, as well as testing and lab reports. It is also used to document and store data, in addition with many more abilities. It is important to understand the purpose, application, challenges, and advantages of an electronic heath record. In order to get a greater understanding of its use, we will use a private family medicine practice as the foundation for implementing the EHR.

How data is captured varies from institution to institution. In order for data to be well understood, data should have a definition that is consistent and comprehensively understood by all users of the data. Standardization of how data is captured is critical to allow the production and export of data needed to support quality assessment, decision support, exchange of data for patients with multiple health care providers and public health surveillance. Patient safety and quality improvement are dependent upon embedded clinical guidelines that promote standardized, evidence-based practices. Unless we can achieve standardization with terminology, technologies, apps and devices, the goals of EHR implementation will not become a

Worldwide use of computer technology in medicine began in the early 1950s with the rise of the computers. In 1949, Gustav Wagner established the first professional organization for informatics in Germany. Medical informatics research units began to appear during the 1970s in Poland and in the U.S. Since then the development of high-quality health informatics research, education and infrastructure has been a goal of the U.S. and the European Union. (NYU graduate training program, 2010) Changes in the healthcare environment produced fundamental shifts in the delivery of healthcare. The altering landscape of healthcare is creating a huge demand for health data analytics. The growth and maturity of healthcare informatics over the past decade has been a prime catalyst in positioning the healthcare industry for the changes posed by reform measures. By understanding the process of analytics, clinical informatics specialists say healthcare providers have the insight necessary to make the process adjustments in the future.(Riskin, 2013)

It is important to understand the history of how the healthcare industry decided to embrace the use of computer databases. Typically healthcare was often the last to employ new technology; especially when it came to assembling and disseminating data. As a Director of HIM (Health Information Management) it would be beneficial to remember this as there will undoubtedly be some resistance when attempting to implement new and improved systems to track everything from patient outcomes and laboratory tests to prescriptions and medications.

It has only been within the last five years that health information management (HIM) has experienced exponential changes, due to the healthcare reform. The electronic health record (EHR) is connected to health information exchanges and other systems of interoperability. The timely completion of charts, coding and release of information (ROI) has become much more efficient with the electronic record. Traditional HIM functions will just be transformed and will always be an integral part of successful patient care. Professionals must be flexible and willing to adapt and even generate change. As Health Information Technology continues to evolve, so will the roles

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the application of biomedical informatics in many aspects of the healthcare system. This is due to an increasing recognition that a stronger healthcare information system is crucial to achieve a higher quality care at lower costs1. Biomedical informatics is defined as “the scientific field that deals with biomedical data, information and knowledge-their storage, retrieval, and optimal use for problem solving and decision making.”2Biomedical informatics plays significant roles in the healthcare system and it has been applied in various ways in the healthcare system, specifically in the aspect of health care information system such as electronic medical record (EMR), personal health record (PHR), computerized provider order entry (CPOE) systems, bar-coding medication administration systems, telemedicine, telehealth, and administrative information systems 2.

Implementation of Healthcare Information Technology potentially reduces cost yet, remains a continuous challenge. The adoption of improved healthcare infrastructure is compelling and significant barriers remain such as technical issues, cost, concerns about privacy and confidentiality, system interoperability and lack of well trained staff to lead the process (Palvia, Love, Nemati, & Jacks, 2012).

This report outlines how data from EHR can be used towards Meaningful Use (MU), Big Data Analysis, Machine Learning and Advanced Computing for better healthcare decision making process. Will try to understand EHR’s ability to integrate with other systems and tools for data sharing/mining and how this is transforming into better care management. Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) MU EHR incentive program have provided the much needed “push” towards adoption of EHR and resulted into incentivized payment for providers which is contributing towards increased quality, safety and efficiency within health care organizations (HCOs)[1]. Future is now revolving around how EHR can contribute towards latest data driven technological advancements in healthcare and contribute towards better care management with reduced cost.

Technology has had a role in healthcare for some time, but only recently has it matured to a point where it can support operational, business and clinical functions of healthcare organizations. In the past, many hospitals used technology for specialized departments and unique roles, but the concept of a complete electronic health record system did not exist until the early 2000’s. The American Hospital Association (AHA) Information Technology (IT) Supplement to the AHA Annual Survey stated that in 2008 only 9.4% of hospitals had a basic electronic health record (EHR) system (HealthIT EHR, 2014). They defined a basic EHR as having electronic clinical information that includes results and the ability to enter and view clinical notes. Without the ability for healthcare organizations to capture clinical information electronically, an online patient engagement solution cannot

With the increase in information technology, it has allowed data to be accessed almost anywhere in the world. Gone are the old ways of looking at data such as going to a data resource centers. In the medical world, Health information technology (HIT) open up vast new opportunities to physicians and medical care providers all over the world. The introduction of Electronic health records (EHR) allows healthcare providers to record patient data digitally and can assist in health care delivery. With EHR being readily available, they can increase the health and span of an individual’s lifetime regardless of socioeconomic status. When looking at American health care, the OECD has the US as one of the worst developed health care systems and a large part of it is due to our health information technology. Health care

Adding electronic health record (EHR) systems, dashboards and electronic data warehouses to a healthcare practice enables administrators and managing physicians to modernize their service delivery model and work toward high-quality continuity of care. While EHRs provide a cost-effective mechanism for documenting patient encounters and improving patient experiences, some organization leaders don't understand how to leverage analytics to strengthen their practice.

“By 2015, use of a certified electronic health record (EHR) is mandated under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act” (Kelly & Tazbir, 2014, p. 129).Electronic health records comes from the electronic medical records data and where nurses document the patient’s care that has the ability to move from one provider to another. “The main purpose of documentation is facilitating information flow that supports safety, quality, and continuity of care” (Kelly & Tazbir, 2014, p. 131). Electronic health records also improves the quality of confidential health information as compared to the paper system. Informatics is defined as “the use of information technology as a communication and information-gathering tool

Healthcare is a tough industry to differentiate oneself, especially with analytics. The healthcare industry is renowned for lagging behind in its adoption of technology compared to other industries. Not the therapeutic or diagnostic technologies like sophisticated surgical or high-end medical imaging equipment, but rather the technologies that capture and digitize accurate, valid, reliable and measurable data at the point of care necessary to accelerate transformation and the advancement of healthcare through analytics. Margalit Gur-Arie, Founder of BizMed (2013) sums it up with this comment “computers have eased and simplified the capture, analysis and sharing of financial information, supply chain information, manufacturing information, transportation information, and every

Health information systems (HIS) is the information technology that supports healthcare function. It includes all computer systems: hardware, software, operating systems, and end-user connecting people to the systems, networks, the electronic connectivity between systems, people, and organizations, and the data those systems create and capture through the use of software (Balgrosky, 2015). The effective use of technology and data can improve the overall quality of health care delivered and improve the overall function and efficiency of health care systems.