Health Information System

This article discusses the reasons why some healthcare organizations have been reluctant to implement electronic medical records, the impact of HIPAA on patient's medical records, advantages and disadvantages of HITECH Act, workflow processes within health organizations, federal initiatives impact on healthcare information, and fundamental advantages of applying an IT system within healthcare organizations.

Running head: HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 1
Health Information System
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 2
Provide at least three (3) various reasons why some health care organizations have been
reluctant to implement electronic medical records.
The electronic medical record is slowly being utilized within the United States health
care centers. However, it has been discovered that very few medical centers are adopting the
system. Very few ambulatory physicians about four percent have been reported to have an
extensive and fully functional EMR system and further thirteen percent have been found only to
have primary systems. Some of the reasons that are hindering most healthcare centers from
developing the electronic records system are as highlighted below (AbouZahr & Boerma, 2015).
The first one is a high capital cost that is incurred to create the system. Moreover, the lack of
enough returns on investment for small safety net providers and practices.
The second reason the development of EMR is hindered in many healthcare centers is
that of the, and the estimation of the capabilities of the organization and the change management
needed. Other reasons include the failure to amend the clinical system so that they are designed
to incorporate the EMR technology system, some healthcare officials and stakeholders are
hesitant from the fear that the system will become obsolete (Beaver, 2013). The other er reason is
the lack of skilled labor and resources to implement and support the system and the concern that
the current market systems are still not capable of meeting the needs of rural health centers, and
finally, there is the concern that the implementation of EMR may lead to unintended
consequences
Discuss the essential manner in which the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act (HIPAA) impacts a patient’s medical records.

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 3
HIPPA stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The
enactment of the Act has led impacted patients’ records by ensuring tight security on the
patient’s medical records by the federal law. The act targets to secure the patients’ medical
records from the inappropriate disclosure, and also to ensure that the patients have the right to
know what is contained in their medical records. With the establishment of HIPAA act, there are
procedures such as passwording of the computers and protection of the patient’s information,
their appointments, and type of medical care (Haux, 2016). Moreover, explaining the medical
condition of a patient in a way that may reveal the patient’s identity unless it is for treatment
purposes is considered illegal.
Determine the main advantages and disadvantages of the adoption of The HITECH (the
Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health) Act for healthcare
professionals. Next, suggest one (1) strategy that the medical staff members could use to
mitigate the main disadvantages in question.
The HITECH Act (Health Information Technology for Economic and Cultural Health)
(HITECH Act) is legislation that was created around 2009. It aimed at encouraging the adoption
of Electronic Health Records (EHR). The main advantage of the adaptation of HITECH begins
with the reduction of medical errors (Kushniruk & Borycki, 2017). By digitizing the patient’s
records, nurses, physicians, and other care providers can quickly access the patients’ information
and avoid tracking down folders or worrying about losing notes. Another advantage is the
decrease in the repeat procedures.
Health providers do not share information between different locations. Therefore the
physicians order for the same procedure due to lack of knowledge. Moreover, the patients are
forced to pay for the repeat procedures. This can be easily avoided through the use of Electronic

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 4
Health Recording that can be saved and shared or accessed with ease. Finally, the use of EHR
lowers the overall cost of health care. A decrease in the repeat procedure means reduced cost of
global healthcare.
The disadvantages of EHR are that the solutions are expensive, insecure and clunky.
Many of the proprietaries which are there are very hard to use with poor user interfaces. Using
less expensive software solutions on its part creates the risk of passing unsecured information,
and further, doctors will charge high startup fees since the HER system is most costly. Secondly,
doctors have not been incentivized to use the system. The government incentives only give
reimbursement to physicians who have already put up a system in place.
Switching overcomes with taking the time to practice which will reduce the doctor’s
time to see the patients. Finally, the doctors are just caught up in their old designs such that
change becomes difficult. The slowness in the physicians to adapt to change is one factor that
poses a hindrance to the adaptation of the EHR system, thus the disadvantage (Winter & Haux,
2011).
Review the typical workflow processes within health organizations, and decide the single
most significant method that the health organization must eliminate to improve the service.
Provide a rationale to support your response.
One of the fundamentals of ensuring quality service delivery is in the processes and not
mostly the individuals. This idea is widely spread lately even though some centers still believe in
the achieving of performance by removing the incompetent and weak performance (Lippeveld,
Sauerborn & Bodart, 2015). It is, however, important that health centers eliminate the complex
systems, for instance, the catheterization laboratory where the laboratory needs four individuals

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 5
to carry out 50 different activities. And further the activities of each person I linked to the events
of three others through a finely designed and timed series of interactions, dependencies, and
handoffs. This is just one example of what patients go through even on the most routine
hospitalization.
The reasons why the complex processes ought to be eliminated is because they are often
characterized by too much work and a waste of time. One will find out that the tests are repeated
either because they are missing or they are not performed correctly for the first time. Moreover,
requisitions must be written since they get lost or are not filled correctly. For the health care
centers to experience change and quality, like every other industry, they should eliminate waste
as a crucial part of efforts to improve (Wager, Lee & Glaser, 2013).
Analyze the primary ways in which the critical federal initiatives impact the standards of
healthcare information for patient privacy, safety, and confidentially.
Safety and privacy of the patient’s records have been improved through the federal’s
initiative of enacting legislation that ensures that the patient’s information is treated
confidentially by the health caregivers (Balgrosky, Brady & Speaker, 2015). The federal
government has therefore put in place robust frameworks and policies that deal with the privacy
and security of patients’ information. Among others is the Federal Information Security
Management Act (FISMA), Office of Management and Budget policies, guidance and standards
put in place by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Privacy Act.
There is also the creation of the HIPAA statute provides the flexibility that ensures the protection
of health information and the health IT environment and still allowing the emergence of good
practices (Rodrigues, 2010). Moreover, the federal government has ensured privacy and security

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 6
through IT. There are many privacy and safety framework that exists through the federal’s
initiative to provide patient’s information security and privacy
Specify the fundamental advantages of applying an IT system within health care
organizations.
Incorporating IT into healthcare organizations has several advantages among them is the
potential savings. IT has far-reaching potentials of savings since it reduces complex processes,
and ensures that there is no repeat of the initial procedures (Ash, Berg & Coiera, 2014). Also, it
has the potential to increase the quality of the services rendered. The recorded patients’
information will be accessible widely hence making treatment more accessible.
The availability of the records will also ensure that the patients with complex health
problems have their records handy hence improving communication and coordination of the
treatment. Finally, the potential to increase access to care is another advantage of incorporating
IT into a healthcare organization (Armoni, 2010). When patients’ records are stored electronically,
distance does not become a challenge to access the files. IT will also enable doctors to use HIT
to help patients in managing chronic illnesses.
Predict new IT developments in the healthcare industry for the next two (2) decades.
Justify your response.
There are several IT development expected in the coming decades, to mention but a few,
the US will be mostly focused on implementing, Personal Health Record (PHR), Electronic
Health Record (EHR) and Health (mHealth) systems (Allaërt. 201 2). Therefore, the use of health
information technologies (HIT) will increase and may contribute more to affordability and
improvements in the quality of service. By 2020, the health sector is focused on the use of Unser

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 7
Interface (UI) for instance Google Glass and Gaming technologies. Mobile apps using these
devices will be useful in assisting in the prevention and treatment of a broad range of health
problems.

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 8
References
AbouZahr, C., & Boerma, T. (2015). Health information systems: the foundations of public
health. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 83, 578-583.
Allaërt. (2012). Security standards for healthcare information systems: a perspective from the
EU ISIS MEDSEC Project. Amsterdam Oxford: IOS Press.
Armoni, A. (2010). Healthcare information systems: challenges of the new millennium. Hershey,
Pa: IGI Global (701 E. Chocolate Avenue, Hershey, Pennsylvania, 17033, USA.
Ash, J. S., Berg, M., & Coiera, E. (2014). Some unintended consequences of information
technology in health care: the nature of patient care information system-related
errors. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 11(2), 104-112.
Balgrosky, J., Brady, J. & Speaker, R. (2015). Essentials of health information systems and
technology. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Beaver, K. (2013). Healthcare information systems. Boca Raton, Fla: Auerbach Publications.
Haux, R. (2016). Health information systems–past, present, future. International journal of
medical informatics, 75(3-4), 268-281.
Kushniruk, A. & Borycki, E. (2017). Human, social, and organizational aspects of health
information systems. Hershey, PA: Medical Information Science Reference.
Lippeveld, T., Sauerborn, R., & Bodart, C. (Eds.). (2015). Design and implementation of health
information systems (p. 281). Geneva: World Health Organization.
Rodrigues, J. (2010). Health information systems: concepts, methodologies, tools and
applications. Hershey PA: Medical Information Science Reference.

HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM 9
Wager, K., Lee, F. & Glaser, J. (2013). Health care information systems: a practical approach
for health care management. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Winter, A. & Haux, R. (2011). Health information systems: architectures and strategies. London
New York: Springer.