The Future Challenges of Healthcare Management

The health care industry is an environment that is competitive and expensive. To be a patient receiving care the urgency is high and at a very critical point to trust a team of strangers with your care possibly even your life. On the other side of that coin, treating and interacting with patients is a part of the health care industry because providing care does not end with the physician. In the middle of these two different side of health care is where management steps in and takes over the middle ground.

The health care sector is impacted by numerous changes and challenges, such as increasing need for health care provision, changing demands from patients or rapidly evolving technologies. In the context of evolving technologies, the developments occur not only in the actual provision of the medical act, but also at the level of the complementary operations, such as health care information management.

There are many challenges that are defining the future strategic direction of health care such as information technology advancements, access to health care, maintaining a skilled workforce, proposed health care reform and legislation, and rising costs. I will look at these challenges and how an organization may adapt its direction and strategies in accordance with these challenges.

Healthcare information technology forms a pivotal part of today 's healthcare system. Improved quality of healthcare, patient safety, drastic reduction in medical errors and enhancement of care delivery is possible because of the induction of these solutions in the healthcare delivery environment. Today, healthcare IT solutions are enabling processes like planning, decision-making related to organizational development, strategic planning to drive growth, recruitment of competent personnel, managing employee benefits, payroll, intra-department communication, etc.

Changes in current health care practices, the aging baby-boomer population, and the higher acuity of patients has created a need for change and adaptability with the health care industry. Kaiser is an organization who has shown the ability to continuously change in order to reduce costs while improving efficient quality patient care. The investment on information technology (IT) advancements such as the implantation of electronic health records (EHRs) and use of a patient portal system is one way the organization has shown readiness to meet the health care needs of patients. KP in collaboration with five other healthcare organizations created a Care Connectivity Consortium, enabling secure electronic retrieval of current

International terrorism has greatly impacted the role of first responders throughout the U.S., not only in terms of large scale events like the attacks on 9/11, but the role of the first responder has needed to adapt to the widely varying methods of attacks that have been employed. First responders may face threats from biological, chemical, and radiological weapons of mass destruction. First responder heroes of 9/11 are still dealing with injuries, illness, and even still dying from the effects of that terrorist attack. (ODMP, 2017). First

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

A governmental concern is that a bioterrorist attack will trigger panic amongst the population. Panic refers to a group response where intense fear causes people to be concerned with only their survival. While actual panic is rare, there are certain factors that could cause panic in the event of a bioterrorist attack, including limited medical resources where “first come, first serve” applies, a perception that there is poor

Quality and care management innovations implemented by the Hill Physicians Medical Group were the use of health information technology (HIT), predictive modeling, and chronic care management. The Group capitalized $5.7 million towards the implementation of electronic medical records (EMRs) throughout their physician offices to assist with clinical workflow, management of patient health information (PHI), and integration evidence-based practice procedures. Predictive modeling was used to manage chronic conditions by utilizing a Priority Score to establish who might need major health care services. As such, nurse case managers were able to

The health care industry is one of the most dynamic and delicate industries in the U.S. having experienced healthy and substantial changes for the last thirty years most of which have aimed to improve health care management and services delivery to the patients. The changes have enabled the integration of technology into the industry such as in the area of informatics, science and research and payment services and clinical treatments. The health care sector has introduced various changes to address disease and health care management such as the Modernization Act of 2003, the Patient Protection Act and Affordable Act, which aim at improving health provision and most

Information and communication technology has been adopted and implemented within various sectors of the economy. This is attributed to the benefits of technology in facilitating organizational activities and processes and its use in meeting the changes which characterize the modern society. The health sector is one of the industries which have significantly implemented technology. The health sector’s technological applications have been achieved within health information systems. The implementation of technology in this sector has resulted into both positive and negative implications on health

Health Care Information Management is something that is becoming extremely popular. Health Care Information Management Systems are computer systems that keep patient files, protect the security of the patient’s information, and keep everything more organized than what can be accomplished by individual people. Employment in this field is expected to grow faster than it has been. Jobs for this field include: Director HIM, Supervisor HIM Data Analyst, Auditor, Private Officer,

The present challenges for the healthcare industry are significant. With a population that is forever aging, escalating costs, and the unsure impact of the Affordable Care Act, healthcare providers are under tremendous pressure to meet the needs of their patients while maintaining or even reducing costs. One such organization feeling this pressure is BayCare which is a leading not-for-profit health care system that connects individuals and families to a wide range of services at 13 hospitals and hundreds of other convenient locations throughout the Tampa Bay and central Florida regions. Inpatient and outpatient services include acute care, primary care, imaging, laboratory, behavioral health, home care, and wellness. With over 3,100 practicing physicians and more than 58,500 surgeries performed annually, their budget for operating room supplies exceeds $80 million annually across all facilities. Morton Plant Hospital is faced with the challenge of reducing overall operating costs without sacrificing their high standards of patient care and safety. The hospital realized that surgical waste represented a huge opportunity to address. By providing visibility to information that was otherwise hidden, a case cart system would be able to track surgical materials issued, used, and returned; including between doctors, procedures, and locations. This could help the hospital to achieve a number of objectives including: guarantying that all material issued to the OR was accounted for

Over the past few decades, the significance, magnitude and consequence of risk management and communication have been brought before the world over and over again in a number of situations related to health, terrorist activities, natural disasters etc. When one turns the pages of history, it is rather obvious that lack of planning and absence of resources due to unpreparedness makes it difficult for the concerned authorities to manage an emergency or epidemic a problematic and traumatic task. The chaotic situations can turn out to be more nerve-racking and tense when preparations are not made before hand (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 2002).

Health information managers manage all aspects of the content of patient medical records and patient information systems. Their responsibilities can include aspects of clinical information documentation capture and maintenance, data analytics and interpretation, as well as designing, implementing, and maintaining health information technology systems. They are commited to the timely and accurate collection of health information and its maintenance, storage, retention, and disclosure, Health Information Management Professionals ensure that such information is kept private, secure, and in accordance with the law.