#3 Electronic Health Records
Paper health records have stood the test of time since the Egyptians documented one’s health. However, there is a new transformation evident in this field. Electronic Health Record (EHR) will be the solution to delivering a more effective healthcare service in the future.
My final year project is linked with the electronic health records and its implementation. I’m not just your friendly neighbour blogger, I have some experience with the information provided. I was surprised that the strategy to implement EHR took so long to be initiated. I have also come from an IT risk assurance position in a top firm and will provide insight from experience.
So, many medical communities are making the move to paperless records. It is a slow and costly process, but the benefits in the long run certainly outweigh the drawbacks. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) 1996 outlines the security measures that healthcare providers are required to adhere to, for both paper records and EHR.[1] Storing the information online increases the threats against cybersecurity breaches. Paper records might be harder to steal in bulk, but if one went missing it may be more difficult to notice. With EHR, files can have audit trails which provides a more transparent service. In essence, you will be able to track who did what and when. Paper records presents possibility of unethical access to patients records. Not to say Doctors are stalking our records but there is no guarantee and it is difficult to track without digital means.
It will be difficult to picture your doctor strolling up with a touchpad instead of his clipboard and a fountain pen. The biggest concern will be the worry that he is taking notes and not catching up on his meme addiction.
Hypothetically, you visit the doctor and they refer you to the hospital or a specialist. If the two practices used EHR and communicated using this system, each would be able to view your records simultaneously in real time. This is certainly going to give you a better experience.
Benefits of electronic health records
Like many processes, recording via paper is considered a primitive method. Electronic records are essentially the improved digital version of the paper method. How is it improved and why is it better??? If you consider any manual process and then think about how technology has helped or improved it, time and efficiency are most likely to come to mind. This is the case with the healthcare provider’s strategy to utilise EHR.
Moving paper records to an online platform will enable doctors to access patient files at the click of a button and from any location. Affiliated hospitals and clinics will have the ability to share and access the same information. This will reduce the number of medical records for the one identity and most importantly a reduction in the storing of paper files. This will also reduce the amount of staff required to maintain the files due to increased accuracy that the technology will provide towards file management within a database.
EHR will provide transparency over the prescribed medication for a patient. It will also reduce the time required and improve the overall accuracy. A better oversight will allow for a better service. Prescription medicine will now be legible, you will no longer need a level 99 deciphering skill.
Patients will get to view their own health records and advise from doctors in real time, thanks to EHR. This is outlined in the eHealth Ireland’s strategic programmes.[2]
One of which looks at giving patients access to their own records. Patients will be able to view their own health records and have access to an audit event trail to see who else has been viewing their records (I smell GDPR coming into play here).
These are just some of the ways how EHRs can improve healthcare and provide better clinical decision making. I’m not on commission or getting paid to promote, so let’s look at some of the negatives.
Disadvantages of electronic health records
As with any strategic operation, there is going to be some obstructions or potential pitfalls. The implementation of a more digital healthcare system will be very costly. This can be due to the current software in place and the interoperability between systems. However, the lack of communication between systems and hospitals can come at an even higher cost. According to the Health Business and Technology in the USA, most lawsuits come from miscommunication, poor documentation and patients being misinformed.[3]
Cybersecurity threats will be a major concern for healthcare providers with EHR. They must ensure that a robust security strategy is in place to safeguard patients’ data. Training of staff on phishing scams and standardise a set of rules for handling patient data. Healthcare providers will need to be aware of the latest software updates and the most recent cyber threats. Under HIPAA, healthcare providers will be responsible for ensuring the safety of the data. Otherwise, they will be liable to fines. Hackers are not interested in stealing money, like from a bank, but what they can do is use the information to gain sensitive information like personal security numbers and details. Most systems will have firewalls and multiple security measures to prevent this, but there is always going to be some “geek” that can bypass. They may not take anything, but organisations need to be wary of ransomware. This is when they install malware and hold information ransom for money or other demands.
In the end…
This blog was a brief introduction, but even from these examples you can surely see how the benefits can outweigh the disadvantages. It’s obvious that we’ll promote EHR, coming from an information systems background, it’s our bread and butter. Providers can mitigate the risk and potentially prevent it by following the various security measures like keep updated with cyber threats; software updates; staff training and follow good data management practices(To name a few). Soooo… EHR is just one version of how technology can be leveraged to improve the healthcare industry. Stay tuned to see what’s in store for next week.
Are you as excited as we are?
Daniel,
Team Checkmate
References
- eHealth Ireland. (2018). Strategic Programmes Overview. [online] Available at: http://www.ehealthireland.ie/Strategic-Programmes/
- SearchHealthIT. (2017). What is HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) ? — Definition from WhatIs.com. [online] Available at: https://searchhealthit.techtarget.com/definition/HIPAA
- White, J. (2016). How communication problems put patients, hospitals in jeopardy. [online] Healthcarebusinesstech.com. Available at: http://www.healthcarebusinesstech.com/communication-patient-harm/
