Besides saving time, Information Technology also helps the management to deal with the patients quickly and easily. It reduces the burden of managers and lets them concentrate on patient treatment.
It helps in delivering accurate and accessible information about health-related risks, supports shared decision making, establishes links of social support and enhances tracking of patient’s compliance to treatment programs.
Improved Patient Care
The importance of information technology in healthcare is far-reaching and encompasses a wide range of benefits. Some of the most prominent advantages include improved patient care and better coordination.
For example, health IT allows doctors to easily share test results and recommendations with one another. This helps physicians diagnose illness more quickly and accurately. It also allows them to share data with researchers developing new treatments or medicines, which can help speed up the process of finding a cure for common ailments.
Additionally, health IT reduces administrative burdens on healthcare professionals. This can be especially important for medical staff in smaller facilities. By implementing automated and interoperable health IT systems, hospitals can reduce paperwork and save time and money on routine tasks such as billing, insurance verification and claim processing, and creating financial reports.
Furthermore, telehealth and remote patient monitoring are examples of new technologies that allow patients to receive care without visiting their local healthcare facility. This type of homecare enables patients to consult with their doctor from anywhere using videoconferencing and other telecommunications systems.
Better Coordination
Providing coordinated patient care requires the teamwork of doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals. But effective healthcare coordination is only possible when each person can access information easily. This is where scalable network solutions can help.
Integrated healthcare systems with remote patient monitoring technology, electronic health records (EHRs), and medical billing software make it easy for each healthcare professional to access the information they need. These tools simplify billing-related workflows like invoicing tasks, insurance coverage verification and claims processing, patient demographics creation, and financial reports.
This information technology also makes it easier for patients to communicate with their medical professionals and take a more active role in their care. For example, patients can use online patient portals to view their medical test results and download their medical data, communicate with their doctors via secure messaging, schedule appointments, and more. Moreover, telehealth tools like wearables and homecare telehealth allow patients to monitor their own health with remote patient monitoring and send this data to medical professionals for virtual diagnosis.
Improved Communication
Information technology improves communication between medical professionals, as well as with patients. It allows physicians to access a patient’s medical records and health history, allowing them to more accurately treat ailments and prevent over-prescribing medications that can be fatal. Without medical records, doctors would have to rely on their patients’ memory, which can be inaccurate due to things such as forgetfulness and complex medication names.
This also saves the time of medical workers, as they can respond to emails from patients much faster than responding to phone calls. It also helps to reduce the number of medical errors caused by miscommunication between healthcare professionals.
This is because the technology enables doctors and nurses to exchange data in a legible format that anyone can understand. This is important in order to ensure that patients receive the best care possible. Moreover, it also allows them to monitor their patients’ progress and share test results with other doctors in a timely manner. It also facilitates the process of clinical trials, where researchers can track patient information to find the right treatment for various conditions.
Reduced Medical Errors
Medical errors are an ongoing concern for patients, healthcare providers and payors. However, medical technology can help to reduce these issues.
Medical records are now digitized, allowing physicians to access information remotely when they’re not in the hospital. This allows doctors to make more informed decisions regarding a patient’s care and treatment options.
Another benefit of information technology is that it improves communication between medical professionals. This ensures that all medical professionals are working together to give the best possible care to a patient. This reduces miscommunication and medical errors that can cause harm to a patient.
In addition, health IT can also reduce costs for the medical facility. This is because it helps to streamline operations and make them more efficient. For example, electronic sign-out tools, bar-code medication administration systems, retained surgical items detectors and telemedicine all help to reduce hospital expenses. This can be a big win for a medical facility that is struggling to balance their budget and keep their doors open. By making the process more efficient and cost-effective, they can help to maintain or even improve their profit margins.
Improved Patient Engagement
The healthcare industry is increasingly shifting from a physician-led paradigm to one that relies on patient demand. This shift has been accelerated by advancing IT.
Patients today expect to be connected to their healthcare teams and to receive relentless guidance and support throughout the duration of their treatment. IT solutions such as streamlined communication platforms, patient portals, mobile apps, telehealth and remote patient monitoring help to achieve this goal.
Patient engagement is a critical component of improved care coordination, reduced medical errors and enhanced adherence to treatment. It also helps in reducing the management burden of the healthcare system.
For example, implementing automated appointment reminders via email or text ensures that patients show up for their scheduled consultations. This is especially helpful for patients who have difficulty remembering dates and times due to health conditions like PTSD, dementia or depression. Furthermore, implementing a fully comprehensive Chronic Care Management (CCM) program with a provider that provides real-time reporting allows physicians and nurses to better track the progress of their patients’ treatment. Lastly, engaging patients with interactive education and encouraging them to be involved in the decision-making process allows them to take more ownership of their care.
