Question

Nursing informatics is dynamic and continues to evolve over time. What information technology (e.g., bar coding, EHR, mobile devices) have you witnessed that positively affected and supported safe patient care? Share specific examples and explain why and how you feel they have supported patient safety.

Answer 1

Answer: Information technology plays an important role in the healthcare system. The health information technology are not only being used for the treatment but also in the diagnosis as well as in the maintenance of the healthcare organization to provide better services to the patients.

The use of EHR ( electronic health record) system has provided a better platform to the healthcare organization to provide quality of care to the patient. For example, The Electronic health record system stores the patients Information regarding all the medical history, diagnosis as well as the treatment and the medication provided to him. When the patient visit next time for consulting the healthcare professionals, he did not have to repeatedly inform about the whole medical history regarding himself. This makes patient more comfortable and it also save time of healthcare professionals as they can easily go through the saved data of the patient and can review the present condition. It is a time saving process which enables healthcare professionals to concentrate more on their work. By this they can easily provide quality of care to the patient. The EHR provides safety to the patients by reducing the medical errors.

The use of information technology in the healthcare organization such as telehealth. The telehealth removes the barrier of distance between patient and healthcare professionals. It enables the patient to contact the healthcare professionals and get the treatment. Healthcare professionals can directly review the reports in the mobile device and can prescribe medications to the Patients.

For example, an elderly person living at home suffering from severe joint pain, but he is unable to go to clinic for his regular consultation with the Healthcare professionals. So in this case telehealth plays important role as it enables that patient to contact the healthcare providers and can get review of his health.