Narrowing the Focus

My underlying topic remains health information technology (HIT) and its impact on patient safety, quality, and efficiency within the health care delivery system. However, the focus has been narrowed to employer groups, specifically larger corporations, and how HIT, or the lack thereof, can impact them. Most importantly, what they can do to influence the creation of solutions to bring about change in the system.

Thousands of individuals die in hospitals each year due to preventable medical errors. These “preventable” mistakes include prescribing errors due to illegible paper-based prescriptions, overlooked drug interactions and allergies, drug overdoses, and mistaken patient identities, to name a few. Many factors contribute to these incidents including inadequate technology and health care professionals’ unawareness of their patients’ receiving multiple treatment plans from multiple providers. This lack of awareness, and a lack of efficient technology, can lead to duplicative services and potential drug interactions, to name a few.

Employers are affected by lost productivity when medical errors result in conditions that force employees to miss work. The financial costs associated with these preventable errors are eventually passed on to employers in the form of increased health care premiums. U.S. employers currently face double digit health care cost increases and they struggle to find solutions that will keep their costs under control. Medical errors that affect employees impact worker productivity and can result in increased absenteeism.

While technology has been identified as the solution to effectively and efficiently bring about improvements in the health care system, it is expensive. Cost is noted as the main barrier for physicians and hospitals to implement these types of solutions. Other issues include physician adoption of technology and challenges in implementing a universally-accepted system.

There are several possible solutions under the umbrella of health information technology (HIT). However, for the purpose of this assignment, I plan to focus on one or two that employer groups have the ability to directly influence. Electronic health records, or EHRs, are examples of technology that would provide clinicians with access to treatment information to help them better care for their patients. Computer physician order entry (CPOE) systems are electronic prescribing systems that allow health care professionals to enter orders into a computer. They are designed to catch medication errors at the most critical time – at the time medications are ordered. For additional information on health information technology and how it can improve efficiencies and patient safety, please visit this website.

Large corporations across the country have recognized the need for innovative technology, and, more importantly, the need for increased quality and safety within the health care system. As an example, The Leapfrog Group, an organization comprised of large employer groups and public agencies focused on patient safety, began in 1998 with the intention of influencing quality in the health care industry. Since that time membership has grown and their influence within the industry has flourished. To find out more about this innovative group, please visit this website.

I look forward to continued research on this topic as this narrowed focus will allow me to effectively communicate with the audience to influence change.