EHR is a new and improve digital version of a patient’s physical paper chart. EHRs is a patient-centered system that makes information available via the computer system, and most of all, it is secure, safe and can only be used by authorized users. Even though EHR involves medical treatment and patient medical history, the system is created to go beyond normal or basic clinical data collection in hospitals, private doctors and other healthcare facilities across the nation.
As a Consultant, I will have to come up with a strategy planning process, which will make everything fall into place. When it comes to setting up a hospital or updating old technologies within a hospital setting, the administration work in conjunction with the staff such as the doctors and nurses and also alongside the CEO Mr. Johnson, who is the new executive who brought in recently in the Tewsbury hospital.
It may seem instinctive to purchase the new trending and best brand technologies that is in the market, but when it comes to surgical equipment and other upgraded technologies that are needed for the hospital, they maybe high upfront cost, however, it is needed and it is worth it to spend the money to get technologies which will last for years and years to come. Therefore, it must be utilized properly and have a production reputation.
Technologies such as imaging devices for invasive or intensive cardiology procedures and non-invasive oncology platforms should be carefully considered to provide doctors and patients with options for treating certain medical conditions. This might require to spend more money, however, installing upgraded technologies in the hospital, it will benefit the hospital by receiving more patients to treat for their medical condition instead of sending them to a different hospital with upgraded technology and the hospital will also make more money as well, which they can use towards other necessary tools that are needed.
Having new EHR, CPOE, Pharmacy, lab equipment and lab system and also new radiology system, touch screen computers and smartphones for nurses and doctors computers will help them to promote the hospital on social media for example Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and other social media to draw in new and old patients to the hospital and most of all communicate with other hospital and also network with them to reach a larger patient population. Also social media can evaluate the hospital’s readiness.
Experimenting with various types of online and offline social media technologies and services and creating and observing and checking analytics to see what kind of feedback the new and improve hospital is receiving. Next IT strategy is the hospital’s status and reputation, which is one of the main component with respect to patient volumes. Even though the cost might be expensive to upgrade the hospital, but more improvement equals more patients, which equals more profit.
Tablets, computer and smartphones is a smart way to help physicians send out reports online and stay up-to-date with their patients and also instead of calling the patients, doctors can message patient through the system. To also make the hospital more unique and stay competitive new technology such as the speech automated attendant system could be installed. By installing this new system, it will decrease staff overtime and also avoid having any calls dropped.
Installing beside terminals, which will save nurses time and patients will get the opportunity to see what is going on around them while still allowing physicians and nurses to update their patient records effectively and efficiently. Another IT strategy is to set up online payment, so that patients who are in the hospital for a long period of time and do not have anyone to pay their electrical, phone, water and cable bills can do so while they are in the hospital.
This can give the patients a peace of mind and also it will increase the hospital’s accounts receivable. Next IT strategy is the healthcare staffing management system, to keep the cost under control, the Tewksbury hospital can add in staffing management system to maintain scheduling at an ideal state without depriving proper patient care.
