Learn the importance of health information technology for small businesses in New Jersey
Proper communication is one of the crucial components of good health care. It goes far beyond the basic interaction between a health care provider and the patient. The technological advances in data storage have allowed broader communication and wider applications. This article provides a comprehensive guide to health information technology and its importance.
Introduction To Health Information Technology
- The storage, restoration, sharing, and utilization of data linked to a patient’s health care is referred to as health information technology or HIT. Instead of writing piles of paper records, all information related to doctor visits and treatments is electronically managed. Computer hardware and software technology play an integral role in HIT infrastructure.
HIT allows patients to take control and ownership of their health records and outcomes. It not only helps health care professionals to manage a large amount of data but also entices patients to take a keen interest in their health.
Role Of HIPAA
- The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act is a legislation that requires the formation of national standards to provide data privacy and security to protect a patient’s medical information from being revealed without the patient’s consent. Within health information technology systems HIPAA regulations are as important as they are in other health care industries.
As health IT is becoming more common it is important to consider sensitive health data privacy and security. Therefore, healthcare providers need to work consciously toward protecting patients’ medical information from being exposed and passed on from physician to physician.
Importance Of Health Information Technology
HIT has completely transformed the mode and quality of treatments that are administered to patients by their health care providers. Let’s take a look at the significance of HIT infrastructure adoption for doctors and patients.
Quick And Accurate
- Using e-prescription a doctor can directly send a prescription to the pharmacy thus saving patients time. It also mitigates issues like medication errors associated with illegible handwriting on prescriptions.
Moreover, the prescriptions go securely from the doctor to the pharmacy. Duplications can also be prevented through electronic prescriptions and health records.
Rapid Sharing Of Data
- HIT systems are most useful for sharing health data from one health care provider to the next. HIT systems allow doctors all over America to get instantaneous access to new information in their network.
This rapid sharing of patient data is also advantageous for patients who can access their medical information without waiting to hear from their doctor.
Reduced Paperwork
- During a doctor’s visit patients spend a great deal of time filling out paperwork. Filling out these lengthy redundant pages of information can be overwhelming. Electronic information storage plays an important role here by reducing the number of questionnaires a patient has to fill out.
It also saves them from explaining their family and personal history again and again to different physicians. Moreover, patients can also fill out records and update their medical, surgical, and pharmacy history before the appointment. This has the additional benefit of saving time.
Prevents Unnecessary Tests
- When it comes to each patient’s test results doctors may not have perfect recall. It is easier to misplace the results of a test or forget to order a test. HIT resolves this problem by putting the test results of every patient in one place. This eliminates the need for repeated tests thereby saving time and money.
Instead of having to figure out all of the laws and implement HIPAA-compliant IT on your own, let our professionals handle your IT needs while you manage your patients’ care. Our IT experts at Out Source My IT have the knowledge and expertise to give you the kind of HIPAA compliance assurance and IT efficiency that you require for your health care organization. For more information contact us at 973-638-2722.
