Ehr Interoperability Paper

One of the most important characteristics of an EHR while storing the clinical information is its ability to be interoperable: to share that information among other authorized users. If different information systems cannot communicate or interact with each other, then sharing is not possible. In order to achieve the objective to exchange clinical

Healthcare systems are highly complex, fragmented, and use multiple information technology systems and vendors who incorporate different standards resulting in inefficiency, waste, and medical errors (Healthinformatics, 2016). A patient 's medical information often gets trapped in silos, which prevents information from being shared with members of the healthcare community (Healthinformatics, 2016). With increasing healthcare costs, a system needed to be created that would lead to the development and nationwide implementation of an interoperable health information technology system to improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare. Introducing the National Health Information Network (NHIN), this organization can be defined as a set of

Patients are taking an aggressive role in their healthcare needs. Patients desire to in touch with their medical records. Medical professionals are utilizing the Electronic Health Records to implement current data into information necessary to provide quality care for the patient. Thereby, managing patients’ current, and past histories. To understand what is occurring today, one must recognize why patients are taking an active approach to their healthcare.

Despite some barriers and challenges of EHR adoption, transitioning our office to paperless has become inevitable. Timely adoption of EHR would help our clinic receive incentives, merge paper records into the new database, and better organize patient information. In order to ensure the most seamless implementation possible, meticulous planning will be a must.

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

Interoperability is often a word frequently used as a goal to strive for when improving healthcare in the United States. Encouraging the utilization of health information exchange has been cited as a potential way to improve efficiency, increase safety, and enhance quality of care. There are numerous examples of how linking information between multiple data sources leads to a non-trivial task. When two operations are collecting the same data, but are recording information in different formats, it can be nearly impossible to bridge the information between those systems. Standards are important because they can facilitate mutual understanding during in regards to communication and health measures in the context of population health.

In my own words, health care interoperability is nothing short of essential. Interoperability’s basis falls on the exchange of data, but moving more specifically it’s the ability to exchange data regardless of the many different systems and/or codes of multiple Health Care establishments to finally end in the proper use of this data to improve quality of health care. Interoperability’s definition is very specific and in today’s world I view it as a goal that the Health Care system wishes to achieve. There are many different Health Care establishments that are spread all across the world. It is important for everything to be able to not only be transferred but to be understood. Interoperability is very important because health situations can

The future of interoperability has a twofold bearing. Positively, “the seamless exchange of information would improve care, increase operational efficiency and lower costs” (n d, 2017). Interoperability would facilitate care coordination along the continuum of care, enable informatics and advanced analytics within the health sector, (n d, 2017). Negatively, in 2015, the Health Information Technology Policy Committee in its report to Congress, cited the most notable barriers to interoperability as “lack of universal adoption of standard-based EHR systems, complex privacy and security challenges associated with widespread health information exchange and lack of incentive to develop interoperability in the private sector”, (Patil, 2016). To realize

Healthcare information systems within organizations are constantly changing to find the élite and most innovated systems that can provide for the greatest patient care. Each system must conform to national recognized standards to achieve interoperability, portability, and data exchange (Wager, Lee, Glaser, 2013). Organizations who systems standard differ, cannot communicate with each other (Wager, Lee, Glaser, 2013).

“An electronic health record (EHR) is a digital version of a patient’s paper chart. EHRs are real-time, patient-centered records that make information available instantly and securely to authorized users.” (healthit.gov) The EHR mandate was created “to share information with other health care providers and organizations – such as laboratories, specialists, medical imaging facilities, pharmacies, emergency facilities, and school and workplace clinics – so they contain information from all clinicians involved in a patient’s care.” ("Providers & Professionals | HealthIT.gov", n.d., p. 1) The process has proved to be quite challenging for providers. As an

In health care, patients’ lives are in the hands of the health care practitioners, health care organizations, insurance companies, and to some degree, even health care technology. The growth and future implications of evidence-based medicine (EBM) through improvement of technology in health care are important today, because health care practitioners and organizations want to ultimately decrease cost, improve quality of care, and increase access to health care (Glandon, Smaltz, & Slovensky, 2014, p. 28). One way to achieve these goals is through the implementation and improvement of EBM and interoperability which will enhance the efficiency of work production resulting in these positive outcomes. According to Glandon, Smaltz, and Slovensky (2014), EBM is an “information management and learning strategy that seeks to integrate clinical expertise with the best evidence available to make effective clinical decisions that will ultimately improve patient care,” (p. 6). “Interoperability is the ability of different information and communications technology systems and software applications to communicate, to exchange data accurately, effectively, and consistently, and to use information that has been exchanged,” (Iroju, Soriyan, Gambo, & Olaleke, 2013, para. 1). Without interoperability and EBM, fundamental data and information such as patient records cannot be easily shared across and within enterprises having a direct impact on the quality of care. It

As the implementation of electronic health records (EHR) progress nationwide, the concepts of interoperability and health information exchange (HIE) must be discussed. The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (2005, p. 2) define interoperability as “the ability of health information systems to work together within and across organizational boundaries in order to advance the effective delivery of healthcare for individuals and communities.” Interoperability is the enabling of two systems, including those that do not share

An interoperable EHR system will foster faster, quality and more efficient care by allowing clinicians and physicians’ access to the individual’s medical record in its entirety. It will proffer research, new best practices, and pharmaceutical suggestions to treat the patient based on their symptoms and illnesses (Commission on Systemic Interoperability, 2005). It is prudent to follow certain processes such as initiating, planning, executing, closing, monitoring and controlling processes in order to implement the EHR properly.

EHR Interoperability is the ability of one computer system to communicate with another computer system. Example: When buying a cell phone with a plan. Level zero would be only one phone but with level 3 it would be 3 phones. They would all share the same data plan and be able to communicate with each other. It benefits the patient because they can have access to their medical records without going to the doctor’s office. It also benefits the providers because they don’t have to make phone calls to other offices or track down information they need when its available in the EHR.

Standards in healthcare are considered the main source for ensuring interoperability among Healthcare Information Systems (HISs). The complexity of the data generated by these HISs create a set of difficulties for the integration and interoperability of information. Common data models were created as a means to solve this problem, and there has been immense effort put into developing such standards for the healthcare industry. However, multiple standards have been created, and there is a lack of consensus on the comparative evaluations of such standards (Cardoso et al., 2014).