Patient Application Systems: IM/IT Analysis

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The main features, capabilities, and operational benefits to a health care organization using

Patient Care Applications

Patient application systems are information technology devices and structures that enhance healthcare delivery services that are offered by medical practitioners. Patient applications have several features. One of these features is portability. Portability enables patients to carry the application devices and even to move around with them. Some of the patients’ application devices such as customized mobile health monitoring devices are easy to carry. Patients can therefore continue with their day-to-day activities while still using the health devices to monitor or boost their health. Adaptability is another feature of patient applications. Information systems are made in a way that they can be used by patients with little or no efforts. Application devices are customized to fit the needs of individual patients. For example, some devices used in monitoring hormones are made in a way that even the uneducated people and/or the physically challenged ones can use them. The devices can also be used in a wide variety of places, for instance in high-altitude and low-altitude areas. Application systems for patients are also easy to learn and use. The other feature is accessibility. Patients can easily acquire or hire most IT devices. For example, doctors are using mobile phones as devices to keep track of patients’ health. Patients can therefore easily acquire mobile phones.

Management and Enterprise Systems

Management and enterprise systems enable the management of work to be more efficient and effective. There are various capabilities of management and enterprise systems including usability, cost-effectiveness, time saving, and efficiency. Management devices include applications that enable doctors to communicate with their patients who do not understand their language. For example, a Chinese doctor can use the application to treat a patient who only understands English. Hersh (2004, p.292) asserts that application of smart phones in health management has also been widely accepted in health care. Such devices enhance efficiency and effectiveness of the doctors. Doctors can continue to manage the health status of a patient who is miles away. For instance, doctors can send reading materials to patients, thus enabling them (patients) to manage their health. Information is effectively sent to patients’ websites and phones through smart phones. Blumenthal (2010, p.382) confirms that doctors also use health monitoring devices to manage patients’ health. In fact, they issue glucose monitoring applications to patients with glucose problems. These systems enable doctors to multitask and/or keep abreast with patients’ progress account. Applications systems that record and store data for the doctors have also eased their work of recording and managing data. The work of doctors has reduced. In fact, one doctor can manage more patients comfortably.

E-Health Applications

E-health application involves the use of email communication between the doctor and patients. The features of this application include the constant use of the internet and computers. Users must be computer literate. Accessibility to computers should also be guaranteed. The service is also very fast. Use of the internet is a speedy communication service. A patient can e-mail his or her symptoms to the online doctor who immediately sends a prescription in real time. The service is capable of being used in most of the areas with access to electricity, mobile network, and computers. The organizations that adopt e-health also benefit by increasing their efficiency and saving cost. According to Anderson and Goodman (2002, p.42), e-health also enhances privacy of patients suffering from diseases that are not yet appreciated in some communities. For example, a doctor does not need to travel to the patients’ house. Rather, he or she will issue online prescription and receive his or her payment through online money transfer service.

Strategic Decision-support Applications

Strategic decision-support applications are patient applications that enable the patient and doctor to implement the prescription in a successful manner. Hersh (2004, p.292) asserts that decision–support applications are characterized by adaptability and usability. The application is made such that it is easy to use. Patients of various lifestyles can apply them in health management. The application is also adaptable to variation in attitude, climate, and users. Decision-support applications enable medical professionals to achieve their treatment goals. According to Anderson and Goodman (2002, p.42), strategic decision-support applications enable patients to implement doctors’ instruction even in their absence.

The most significant elements that the administrator should address in the strategic plan for the IM/IT

Information technology and management are crucial to patients, medical practitioners, and healthcare managers. A strategic plan should therefore be designed to enable the success of information management implementation program. To conquer today’s healthcare, world health institutions must keep abreast with modern information technology. The strategic plan should indicate the design of the IM/IT plan. It should also indicate the cost of implementing the whole strategy together with the returns that the healthcare will gain from it. The benefits of an IT program are far reaching. Koyuncugil and Ozgulbas (2012, p.2271) argue that medical practitioners will have more efficiency in their work since most of the manual work such as data gathering, processing, and storage will be done using modern technology. Accuracy level of doctors will also improve since doctors will not only rely on their experience but also from facts from the internet. Storage and management of information will also be made easy through IT. It is therefore essential to have good IT/IM systems in health care units.

The importance of a system development life cycle as it pertains to both the development of a custom application and the selection of proprietary systems

System development life cycle is important to ensure the creation, development, and tailoring of information systems in a way that people can use them. Dunn (2001, p.38) affirms that application systems that are meant for health care must be customized by the system analysts to ensure that medical practitioners can use them effectively. Information systems should also be adaptable for a hospital situation and environment. For example, it should be useable by patients and doctors. Patients may have low energy levels to press hard buttons or to lift doors. Others may not even be able to stand up. Information systems should be adaptable by such people. The whole process of system investigation, analysis, design, programming, testing, use, maintenance, and evolution should be tailored to meet these healthcare needs. According to Dunn (2001, p.38), hospital standards and regulations must be adopted in the IT system.

The key element that is necessary to ensure secure access to health care and patient information within a health care management electronic system

Accountability of the IM personnel is important in IM. Since IT relies on data fed, managed, and stored by system operators, the operators must be very trustworthy. Blumenthal (2010, p 382) argues that application systems should have security codes and passwords to regulate accessibility. It is recommended that such passwords be issued to operators of various systems in a bid to ensure accountability. Malicious people can interfere with hospital information. The IT system should have a detection system that alerts the administrator in case of any attack. The administrator should also be proficient enough to ensure quick response.

Two (2) suggestions for enhancing the utilization of systems supposition to health care IM/IT control and development

I would recommend that patient application systems be planned in a way that they are inclusive. Regrettably, in most installations, IT/IM is mainly targeting the elites. For example, the IT/IM systems are made to be very sophisticated for the low-class people to operate. Such systems should be customized to be usable by all patients regardless of their education level. Many cases of IT applications that are a preserve for a few operators have been witnessed in many public facilities. Proper accessibility to the system also enhances its usability. For instance, the physically challenged patient should be provided with customized IT systems. Medical devices such as hormone and blood sugar level monitors should be made usable to all people. In most cases, patients have to rush to the hospital only to have a check on their glucose level. Such a trend can be averted by making IT devices that are useable by all patients. The systems should also be easy to maintain. Bates and Gawande (2003, p.2534) observe that information systems may be expensive to maintain if the healthcare does not have qualified personnel and/or the necessary software. In fact, some fraudsters and system hackers manipulate IM systems with ill motives. Bates and Gawande (2003, p. 2534) reveal that viruses are also dangerous since they can destroy crucial information. Koyuncugil and Ozgulbas (2012, p.2271) argue that IT systems should be easy to operate and/or maintain with readily available resources. Information amassed in the system should also be easy to access and save whenever a necessity comes up. Well-maintained systems will thus enhance accessibility of information even in case of any emergency.

Reference List

Anderson, J., & Goodman, K. (2002). Ethics and information technology: A case- based approach to a healthcare in transition. New York: Springer.

Bates, D., & Gawande, A. (2003). Improving safety with information technology. New England Journal of Medicine, 348(25), 2526-2534.

Blumenthal, D. (2010). Launching HITECH. New England Journal of Medicine, 362(5), 382.

Dunn, P. (2001). ASPs: The Lure of Task Outsourcing. Hospitals & Health Networks, 75(8), 38-40.

Hersh, W. (2004). Health care information technology: Progress and barriers. Journal of American Medical Association, 292(1), 2273-2274.

Koyuncugil, A., & Ozgulbas, N. (2012). Early Warning System for Financially Distressed Hospitals Via Data Mining Application. Journal of Medical Systems, 36(4), 2271-2287.

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