Health Information Technology (IT)

In 2009, a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act enacted. The U.S. federal government contemplates using health information technology (health IT) in improving the quality of patient care and reducing the cost of healthcare. Current federal acts as the Patient and Affordable Care Act, and activities as creating the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMI) impact the adoption of health information technology. This legislation drives the federal government to set specific regulatory standards to ensure effective use of health IT.

With this legislations and laws not all providers and hospitals are using Electronic Health Record (EHRs) efficiently. Consequently, the meaningful use of EHRs plan was created to support the use of EHRs. This plan ensures adoption of certified technology that supports clinical decisions, improved healthcare and patient outcomes. Meanwhile, healthcare organizations work on stage 1 and some reach stage 2, but stage 3 is scheduled to being in 2016. These phases guide healthcare providers to use EHRs in meaningful ways.

Further, the privacy and security of health information concern providers. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) rules are followed to protect the privacy and security of health information. The HIPAA security rules have been practiced for a while; however, after the passage of the HITECH Act, the rules applied directly to healthcare organizations. These rules required healthcare facilities to evaluate leadership safeguards, the physical areas where the records and the data are maintained, and the authority of who can access these records. Each organization must ensure that there is no potential vulnerability of inappropriate access or use of EHRs to avoid penalties. Fines and penalties can be up to $1.5 million.

In brief, the U.S. federal government intended billion of dollars to decrease healthcare cost and improve the quality of patient care. This Act obligates health care organizations to adopt EHRs and the exchange of health data. HIPAA security and privacy rules are practiced to protect the security, integrity, and confidentiality of the EHRs. Moreover, The Joint Commission (TJC) agency accrediting hospitals for meeting federal standards and practiced HIPAA security and privacy rules. As these standards continue to develop and facilitate the change in how healthcare is delivered, the continued use of IT will enhance the creation of new healthcare delivery models.

References

Murphy, J. (2010). Nursing Informatics. The Journey to Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records. Nursing Economic$, 28(4), 283-286.

Narcisse, M., Kippenbrock, T. A., Odell, E., & Buron, B. (2013). Advanced Practice Nurses' Meaningful use of electronic health records. Applied Nursing Research, 26(3), 127-132. doi:1016/j.apnr.2013.02.003

Nelson, R., & Staggers, N. (2014). Health informatics: An interprofessional approach. Elsevier Mosby.

Scherb, C. A., Maas, M. L., Head, B. J., Johnson, M. R., Kozel, M., Reed, D., & ... Moorhead, S. (2013). Implications of Electronic Health Record Meaningful Use Legislation for Nursing Clinical Information System Development and Refinement. International Journal Of Nursing Knowledge, 24(2), 93-100. doi:10.1111/j.2047-3095.2013.01235.x

Studeny, J., & Coustasse, A. (2014). Personal Health Records: Is Rapid Adoption Hindering Interoperability?. Perspectives In Health Information Management, 1-17.