ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD IMPLEMENTATION NUR 514

ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD IMPLEMENTATION NUR 514

ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD IMPLEMENTATION NUR 514

The adoption of electronic health records has shaped significantly the provision of healthcare in the modern world. Electronic health records have made it possible for health organizations to obtain, organize, analyze and present data for the healthcare providers’ use in decision-making. The costs of healthcare have also declined significantly with the use of electronic health records. The reduction is attributed to the enhanced efficiency in the decision-making process and the provision of healthcare. There is also the enhanced provision of safe, high quality care that meets the actual and perceived needs of the diverse populations. Therefore, this research paper examines the roles of the registered nurse in various scenarios related to the use of electronic health records. 

Database to Track Opportunities for Care Improvement Information

Health information systems should not only provide enhanced efficiencies in data use but also tracking for opportunities in healthcare too. Different kinds of information are needed to allow for tracking of healthcare opportunities. One of them is information on patient satisfaction. The systems should allow organizations to obtain data related to the level of patient satisfaction with care. The patients should also provide their feedback on areas of improvement that would result in better services to those in need (Sarkar, 2015). Such information is important since the organization learns more about the ways in which excellent services can be offered to meet the diverse needs of the patients.

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The other information that is needed in the database is information on appointment processes. The organization needs to be available for the populations in need at all times. It is therefore important that information on the duration that it takes from the time of requesting an appointment to the actual appointment is obtained. Information on effectiveness of the reminders of appointment and missed or cancelled appointment should also be kept in the database. The above information is needed to evaluate the responsiveness of the organization to its consumers (Graña, Toro, & Howlett, 2015). The company can optimize such information by ensuring that patients receive excellent services from booking appointments, actual appointments, reminders, and finding out about the reasons for missed or cancelled appointments.

The other type of information that is needed in the database for tracking opportunities in healthcare is information on the quality of treatment offered to those in need. The nature of care given to the patients should be safe, effective, and quality. It should optimize on patient outcomes such as faster recovery, safety, cost-effectiveness, and minimize adverse events. Therefore, information such as those related to prescription, referral tracking, and result tracking can be used to improve the quality of treatment.

Role of Informatics in Capturing the Above Data

Health informatics plays an important role in capturing the above data that is used for tracking opportunities in healthcare. It promotes the provision of patient-centered care. It also provides a mechanism in which patients and healthcare providers exchange vital information for improving healthcare outcomes. The information can be shared with other healthcare providers for the purposes of collaborative provision of healthcare. Through it, shared decision-making is promoted since patients have more control over the planning of their healthcare needs. Informatics also provides opportunities for error minimization in the use of the collected data. For instance, standards of information used are developed to guide the interpretation of each category of data and its implications to healthcare, thereby, promoting meaningful use of the obtained data.

Systems and Staff Needed in the Design and Implementation Process and Team

The type of system to be selected depends largely on the needs of an organization. However, it is important that the selected system promote flexibility and ease use by the healthcare providers. It should enhance patient-healthcare provider interaction rather than deterring the nature of communication between them. The electronic health record is one such system. Therefore, the user interface of the selected system should be intuitive as well as easy to learn. The simplicity ensures that there is easy transition for the users and enhanced system effectiveness in delivering the needed productivity.

The staff that are needed in the design and implementation of healthcare technologies should comprise of administrative staff, medical assistants, nurses, lead super user, information technology professionals, and physicians.  They are needed in the design process as they provide their input on system features that should be included in the system. They are also needed in the implementation phase as they determine the usability of the system and ease of use. The staffs work as teams throughout the process of system design to evaluation.

Professional, Ethical, and Regulatory Standards that must be incorporated into Design and Implementation of the System

The design and implementation of electronic health systems are done with a consideration of professional, ethical, and regulatory standards. According to the American Nurses Association, healthcare information technologies should promote patient safety as well as enhanced patient outcomes. The data should be accurately as well as efficiently obtained, recorded, stored, analyzed, and reported. Ethical principles that guide the use of electronic health data should also be considered. This includes the principles of confidentiality, privacy, and security of electronic health data. The healthcare providers should also play an active role in the design, implementation, and evaluation of system use in their organizations (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2016).

Regulatory standards must also be incorporated into the design and implementation of health electronic systems. An example is the consideration of the provisions of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) and HIPAA security standards. According to HIPAA, institutions of healthcare should take the responsibility of protecting the health data of their patients. The principles of privacy, confidentiality, and security should be upheld for efficient and effective use of electronic health data. The HITECH Act provides stricter measures that underpin the provisions of HIPAA standards (Sarkar, 2015). It increases the legal liability for any incidence of non-compliance to HIPAA provisions on the use and protection of electronic health data.

How EHR Team Will Ensure that All Order Sets Are Part of the New Record

The EHR team can use a four-step process to ensure that order sets are part of the new record. The steps include coming up with a system of governance for the order set structure, planning and tracking the maintenance and workflow of the order set, creating and making use of style guide that promote consistency, and encouraging practices that streamline order set use in clinical environment. The first step, governance, entails formulating a body to support communication as well as decision making for project coordination, integration, and customization. The governance group can comprise of any staff members and tasked with responsibilities such as providing oversight, establishing use of metrics, and communicating with other stakeholders. In the second step, planning, the expectations, goals, and deadlines of order sets are developed. The existing order sets are edited and integrated into the new systems. The third step, style guide, entails the development of an approach that will promote consistency in aspects such as layout, naming, order set sequencing, types of evidence, and size thresholds. Consistency in these aspects is important as it ensures easy search as well as data retrieval, use, and standardization. In the last step, physician engagement, the staffs involved in the use of order set are invited to review the system. Approaches such as webinars and meetings are used to create awareness among the users (Kelley, 2016). Healthcare provider involvement is critical as it ensures effective adoption of system use in the organization.

How to Communicate Changes in the Plan

Formal means of communication should be utilized in the design and implementation of electronic health systems. These include the use of posters, email, and arranging for meetings with the staff to communicate the progress, needs, and any alterations. These formal methods of communication create awareness among the healthcare providers on the needs of the electronic health systems, thereby, minimizing resistance to system adoption by the staffs. The communication should also be timely and updated to avoid any cases of surprises to the adopters. The environment of the organization should also foster open and free communication (Graña, Toro & Howlett, 2015). The staffs should be able to offer their inputs on the system design and implementation.

Measures and Steps to Evaluate the Success of EHR Implementation from Staff Setting and Patient’s Perspective

Measures of success of EHR implementation are varied. They include adoption process, culture, network and infrastructure efficiency, medical errors, and staff satisfaction with the system. The steps involved in the evaluation of success of EHR include planning, performing calculations on return on investment, assessing system efficiency, assessing quality of care with system, adoption, and evaluation of data input as well as quality. The team should conduct cost-benefit analysis to determine the profitability of the system to the organization and patients. The efficiency is evaluated by using data on patient throughput. The quality of healthcare is determined using surveys on patient satisfaction. Surveys are also administered to the physicians to determine their satisfaction and adoption process. Error rate is determined to evaluate the quality of data input (Gliklich et al., 2014). Through these methods, it is possible to evaluate the implementation of EHR.

Leadership Skills and Theories

Some of the leadership skills that one should have include effective communication, problem solving, project management, and technical proficiency. Open communication is important as it keeps the stakeholders aware of the progress of the implementation. It also ensures that team members communicate their concerns and ways of improving outcomes. The design and implementation of EHR involves people with diverse knowledge, experience, and perceptions. The diversity increases the risk of conflicts, which needs individuals with adept experience in problem solving. The members should also have experience in project management since it demands the setting and evaluation of various deliverables. Technical proficiency is needed to facilitating the understanding of information technology-related terms that are used in the process. The leadership theories that are needed include participatory and transformative leadership styles (Barrett, 2015). In participatory style, all the stakeholders are encouraged to play an active role in the whole project. It focuses on empowering the team members involved in the adoption process. In transformative leadership, the focus is placed on ensuring that individuals work collectively to achieve a common goal. The leaders influence those they lead through encouraging, inspiring, and motivating them to explore innovative ways of doing things.

Conclusion

In summary, electronic health records can be utilized to not only improve the quality of care but also identify opportunities in the healthcare system too. The stored data can be used to explore the trends that can be explored for business profitability. The design and implementation of electronic health records is a collaborative process. It incorporates the insights provided by stakeholders such as doctors, nurses, and information technology experts. Therefore, it is important that the desired leadership style and skills are employed to ensure that the adopted system meets the prioritized needs of the organization.

ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD IMPLEMENTATION NUR 514 References

Barrett, A. K. (2015). Change is inevitable but compliance is optional: Coworker social influence and behavioral work-arounds in the EHR implementation of healthcare organizations. Austin, Tex: University of Texas.

Gliklich, R. E., Dreyer, N. A., Leavy, M. B., Quintiles Outcome (Firm),, United States., & Effective Health Care Program (U.S.). (2014). Registries for evaluating patient outcomes: A user’s guide. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Graña, M., Toro, C., & Howlett, R. J. (2015). Innovation in Medicine and Healthcare 2014. Burke: IOS Press.

Kelley, T. (2016). Electronic health records for quality nursing & health care. Lancaster, PA: DEStech Publications.

Sarkar, I. N. (2015). MEDINFO 2015: eHealth-enabled Health. IOS Press.

Stanhope, M., & In Lancaster, J. (2016). Public health nursing: Population-centered health care in the community. St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier.