Respond to at least two of your colleagues* on two different days, offering additional/alternative ideas regarding opportunities and risks related to the observations shared.
*Note: Throughout this program, your fellow students are referred to as colleagues.there are two discussions each discussion needs two references . The two discussions are attached to the file.
A reference is not complete unless you have a do it or the database where you retrieved your article.
Susan S
A healthcare technology trend that I have observed is telehealth. During covid, Psych Drs. used telehealth to counsel their psych patients. Another telehealth example, Peer Recovery staff used telehealth to interview substance abuse patients for drug and alcohol rehab.
I have also used telehealth during covid and continue to use it for my nutritionist appointments. Using telehealth with my nutritionist is easy and I don’t have to drive 30 minutes one way or sit in the office waiting to be seen.
There are some risks associated with telehealth. A risk for psych patients would be the psychiatrist missing any pertinent body language if all they see is the patients face. Another risk is the computer being hacked during the therapy session. Hackers could gain personal and medical information about the patient and use it to black mail them with personal sensitive details. An even greater risk is identity theft (Steger, 2019).
There are benefits and risks associated with data safety, legislation, and patient care when using telehealth. A safety benefit is using firewalls and encryption; however, “organizations are far too reliant on firewalls and encryption, neither of which can stop modern-day cyberattacks” (Steger, 2019). A patient safety benefit would be not supplying your social security number to hospitals and Dr. offices since it is not required by law (Steger, 2019). According to Steger “when healthcare organizations fail to protect patient data, they risk losing the trust of their patients and, ultimately, their reputation” (2019). An example of legislation safety is any home health nurse using telehealth has to be licensed in each state they use telehealth as a practice (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2018).
I believe telehealth is the most promising technology for impacting healthcare in nursing practice. Nurse practitioners in rural areas will be able to meet the health care needs of their patients and any underserved populations can connect with their NP through their phone, computer, or tablet (Laureate Education, 2018). Telehealth nursing can provide information and education to patients who are chronically ill, identify at-risk patients, and “effective for patients in prisons who cannot access traditional care sites” (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2018).
Telehealth will contribute to improvements in patient care outcomes, efficiencies, and data management through remote patient monitoring. Examples of remote patient monitoring would be diabetic patients, psychiatric, cardiovascular, and respiratory (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2018).
Reference
Laureate Education (Producer). (2018). Informatics Tools and Technologies [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. G. (2017). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge (4th ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Steger, A. (2019). What Happens to Stolen Healthcare Data? Healthtech Magazine. https://healthtechmagazine.net/article/2019/10/what-happens-stolen-healthcare-data-perfcon
Hope S
RE: Discussion – Week 6
COLLAPSE
Technology in healthcare is a tool that can be used to chart, to gather data, and to provide information for and connect with patients (Laureate Education, 2018). On my unit it is used frequently for these purposes and I also have educated patients on how to access their patient portal to view results and make appointments. Technology is convenient when it works and when the patient and health care worker are both technologically literate. With some older patients and nurses as well I have noticed a lot of hesitancy when it comes to utilizing technology as well as just utter confusion when it comes to using any form of technology, be it medical equipment, a computer, or a smart phone. This limits resources that are available to the nurse and the patient.
The benefit of utilizing technology in healthcare is that it can be easier to find specific documents and it is more organized and less labor intensive when seeking out information. This allows for efficiency in patient diagnoses and treatment. When a patient has all of their information accessible through an electronic health record (EHR), it gives health care providers more data to go off of in order to provide the best care possible, based off of the individual’s medical history (HealthIT.gov, 2018)
The risk in utilizing an EHR is that some patients may not give consent to allow their chart to be so accessible. There is a lack of understanding of the EHR and some patients may not be willing to participate in something that makes their documentation more “accessible” for fear of their personal information being available for many to see. With technology rapidly developing and changing the way medicine is practiced, policies and laws are put in place to protect and monitor the usage of these tools to protect the patient and health care workers. As medicine and technology evolve, the passage of laws and policies do not seem to come about as quickly. This creates concern that these tools might be misused either intentionally or unintentionally. One could also argue that these tools may not be able to be used to their full potential until limits are set in place to protect users and patients. Although for the time-being there are security systems in computers and charting systems, so that only health care workers have access to patient information (Cherif, Bezaz, & Mzoughi, 2021).
The healthcare technology that I find most favorable during this time include telehealth to allow for meetings with health care professionals through video and patient portals that allow patients to view results and appointments. Patient portals can also allow for convenient communication with physicians through secure messaging systems. These tools allow for convenience in both treatment and education. This is helpful to those with disabilities and that have difficulty leaving their home. It can also allow patients to feel more comfortable to meet with a health care professional from their home. Although it is not possible to use these tools alone in patient care, they could help many. It provides patients with a resource that is easy to use and could help them along their health journey. It is especially convenient while the world continues to face the covid pandemic.
References
Laureate Education (Producer). (2018). Informatics Tools and Technologies [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Cherif, E., Bezaz, N., & Mzoughi, M. (2021). Do personal health concerns and trust in healthcare providers mitigate privacy concerns? Effects on patients’ intention to share personal health data on electronic health records. Social Science & Medicine, 283. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114146
HealthIT.gov. (2018c). What is an electronic health record (HER)? Retrieved from https://www.healthit.gv/faq/what-electronic-health-record-ehr
