Health Information Technology
Health Information Technology : Quality Issues
Author : Neha Salian
Co-author : Malvika Hake
Abstract
Health IT is the technology that enables patients and providers to support better health and health care by providing targeted information meant to inform, educate or generally allow for improved decision making.
With health care costs and quality assurance taking central roles in the health care arena, increasing attention is being directed towards the potential of health information technology (IT) to lower health care spending and to improve efficiency, quality and safety of medical care delivery. One of the primary motivators for adopting many health IT applications is the belief that they improve the quality of patient care. Health IT holds enormous potential to propel the health care system to higher quality.
Diffusion of IT in health care is generally low but surveys indicate that providers plan to increase their investments. Drivers of investment in IT include the promise of quality and efficiency gains. Barriers include the cost and complexity of IT implementation, which often necessitates significant work process and cultural changes.
This paper focuses on quality issues in health IT, including the types of quality problems information technology can be used to solve and implementation strategies to ensure that quality objectives are met.
Keywords: Health Information Technology, diffusion of IT, quality issues, implementation strategies, quality objectives.
INTRODUCTION
Health Information Technology (HIT) provides framework to describe the comprehensive management of health information and its secure exchange between consumers, providers, government and quality entities, and insurers. HIT in general is increasingly viewed as the most promising tool for improving the overall quality, safety and efficiency of the health delivery system.
In general, the various IT applications fall into three categories viz.
Author : Neha Salian
Co-author : Malvika Hake
Abstract
Health IT is the technology that enables patients and providers to support better health and health care by providing targeted information meant to inform, educate or generally allow for improved decision making.
With health care costs and quality assurance taking central roles in the health care arena, increasing attention is being directed towards the potential of health information technology (IT) to lower health care spending and to improve efficiency, quality and safety of medical care delivery. One of the primary motivators for adopting many health IT applications is the belief that they improve the quality of patient care. Health IT holds enormous potential to propel the health care system to higher quality.
Diffusion of IT in health care is generally low but surveys indicate that providers plan to increase their investments. Drivers of investment in IT include the promise of quality and efficiency gains. Barriers include the cost and complexity of IT implementation, which often necessitates significant work process and cultural changes.
This paper focuses on quality issues in health IT, including the types of quality problems information technology can be used to solve and implementation strategies to ensure that quality objectives are met.
Keywords: Health Information Technology, diffusion of IT, quality issues, implementation strategies, quality objectives.
INTRODUCTION
Health Information Technology (HIT) provides framework to describe the comprehensive management of health information and its secure exchange between consumers, providers, government and quality entities, and insurers. HIT in general is increasingly viewed as the most promising tool for improving the overall quality, safety and efficiency of the health delivery system.
In general, the various IT applications fall into three categories viz.