A New Look at Electronic Medical Record

A New Look at Electronic Medical Record
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Abstract
Health record keeping presents a major challenge to health care providers and it is considered the reason behind the United States inefficiencies in the medical information system, making it have the highest health care cost in the world. The information age provides industries with better alternatives for conducting their operations through the digital platform. Electronic medical record (EMR) system offers such an opportunity to the medical industries in facilitating proper record-keeping. There are significant benefits for institutions that incorporate this electronic system in their operations as can be related from the VA system case. Challenges presented by the current EMR systems revolve around data sharing, vulnerability to insurance companies, and low confidence level from the citizens. Physicians, hospitals, health technology companies, insurance companies, and lack of interoperability among systems may act as a stumbling block to the sustainability of EMR systems. If the health care providers do not embrace the digitization of their record keeping, all the stakeholders are bound to experience negative consequences, as there is both business as well as social benefits related to the system’s adoption. However, the adoption of the EMR system may not necessarily result in reduced health care costs, unless the system is properly managed.
A new Look at Electronic Medical Record
Introduction
Electronic Medical Record (EMR) refers to a digital record system that is concerned with the health information of a patient, which enables the creation, collection, management of data and consultation by authorized medical staff within a medical institution.

This system is capable of offering various benefits to the healthcare system as compared to the traditional physical recordkeeping. Greater efficiency and better quality service can be guaranteed with the application of the system while ensuring patient safety.
Discussion
Identify and describe the problem in this case.
A careful analysis of this case clearly brings out the main problem to be the storage of health records in the United States. The traditional way has proved to be significantly inefficient and the Electronic Medical Record system (EMR) is seen as the solution to such inefficiencies, yet it also offers its own challenges. The problem of data sharing may still be experienced in the EMR systems as a result of systems incompatibilities, and conflicting interests in insurance companies threaten to sabotage the system’s progress for lesser health care claims reimbursements. Besides, the U.S. residents are not very enthusiastic in adopting the EMR system in fear that their privacy and security will be undermined.
What people, organization, and technology factors are responsible for the difficulties in building electronic medical record systems? Explain your answer.
Physicians, hospitals, health technology companies, insurance companies, and lack of interoperability among systems present difficulties in building the EMR systems. Physicians may manipulate the system to exploit patients, as hospitals pose an impediment when they partially adopt the EMR system alongside the paper-based system, since this result in great losses. Health technology companies are not able to coordinate and design compatible systems that would enable effective information sharing among different health institutions, while insurance companies may undermine the system for their own advantages. Lack of interoperability makes it even more difficult for the users, particularly due to the absence of connectivity among the systems.
What is the business, political, and social impact of not digitizing medical records (for individual physicians, hospitals, insurers, patients, and the U.S. government)?
Lack of digitization of medical records will have negative impacts on all the stakeholders. Physicians will not be able to efficiently and effectively deliver their services in accordance with the market needs due to the redundant paper-based system of record keeping. Hospitals will also continue to incur great losses if they cannot move away from the manual system. To the insurers, this may maintain the status quo of good business prospects, since they can continue exploiting the loopholes in the information system so as to increase their returns. Patients will receive poor quality health services at greater costs as the U.S government continues to offer the highest health care costs to its citizens, putting their social welfare at risk, and this will culminate to negative politics for the government.
What are the business and social benefits of digitizing medical recordkeeping?
Health providers will be able to deliver their services at affordable prices due to decreased operational costs and gain a competitive edge for higher profits, sustainability and growth. The social benefits are that affordable health care will result to a healthy and productive nation, for greater social developments.
Are electronic medical record systems a good solution to the problem of rising health care costs in the United States? Explain your answer.
Yes and no. Yes because the EMR systems are capable of providing the stakeholders with a better working environment whereby, service delivery is done in a much faster way that promotes cost savings. No because evidence shows that the system can be manipulated by hospitals and physicians for higher charges. Unless this situation can be controlled, EMR systems become irrelevant.
Conclusion
Electronic medical record (EMR) system offers a new dimension to the medical industry with the opportunity to increase efficiency and effectiveness for better quality services as a result of digital record-keeping that significantly saves on cost. In a primary care practice, where time is valuable, you need a system that makes life easier for you and saves your time (Skolnik, 2011). Medical institutions could significantly cut down on their operational cost if the system is comprehensively embraced.
Reference
Skolnik, N. S. (2011). Electronic medical records: A practical guide for primary care. New
York: Humana.