C791 Task 1 1
Advanced Information Management and the Application of Technology
Task 1
Melinda Fernandez
Western Governors University
,C791 Task 1 2
C791 Task 1
Advantages and Disadvantages
Health information systems (HIS) are technology-based platforms for the storage and
legitimate dissemination of patient medical charts and records. They are on the opposite end of
the spectrum from the old style of paper charts and hand-written care notes. There can be
advantages and disadvantages for any HIS.
Some examples of advantages of any HIS begin with more reliable prescribing and health
history reconciliation. That is to say, with a computerized medical record it becomes easier and
more reliable to verify the medications patients are currently taking and conditions they are being
treated for. Cross referencing medications to determine any incompatibilities becomes easier as
well with medication contraindications and interactions built into the software. Another
advantage of an HIS is that is allows for real-time, up-to-date information on patients. Charting
at the bedside allows the provider the opportunity to input assessments immediately as they
happen. When the next user or provider looks at the electronic chart, that assessment is in the
record and available to be viewed. Real-time information can be crucial and even life-saving.
Some ambulance services around the country have the ability to transmit the 12-lead EKG of a
patient to the receiving hospital and decrease the wait time to cardiac intervention for a patient
having a heart attack (ems1.com, 2017). With an HIS, practices can be streamlined, therefore
reducing the overall cost of providing care, and increasing revenues (ahima.org, 2018).
Some disadvantages to an HER are technical glitches, time training staff for a new
implementation and cost. Technical problems can be found with any electronic device or
program, but the same glitches in an HIS can have some more severe implications. Delays in
accessing an electronic patient chart can potentially delay treatment because the medical provider
, C791 Task 1 3
is unable to view the patient’s record, including any lab results, radiology images or therapy
notes. Training staff to use a newly implemented HIS takes time, effort and cost. There needs to
be time invested in training the trainers, then training the staff. And then there is cost. Aside from
the staffing cost associated with the extensive training involved in an HIS implementation, the
start-up costs alone can be astronomical. They include the cost for the software, any equipment
updates, and the cost to convert all of the existing paper charts into electronic medical records.
This is not including any annual maintenance charges for the software and technical support. A
recent study of HIS implementations found that a typical multi-physician practice can expect to
spend approximately $162,000 for an HIS implementation alone
(medicaleconomics.modernmedicine.com, 2012). The same study found that a similar practice
could lose a significant revenue because they could only see about half their usual number of
patients due to staff needing extra time to learn their way around the computer software
(medicaleconomics.modernmedicine.com, 2014).
Usability
It is important that providers who take care of patients be able to easily use an HIS to
document. Clinicians and medical providers have the advantage of drop-down boxes for chart
input. Depending on the HIS system, drop down boxes can have static choices (those that are
unable to be changed), or free-text boxes, so the end user can input a unique response. This kind
of documentation creates a uniform way of charting, easily understood by any end user who
needs to review it. A disadvantage to drop-down boxes is when there are limited choices and
none fit what the clinician is trying to say in their charting. Another disadvantage is when the
predetermined questions in the chart are not asking what the clinician wants to answer. The
clinician ends up needing to create a narrative note, which is just the opposite of what the HIS is
Advanced Information Management and the Application of Technology
Task 1
Melinda Fernandez
Western Governors University
,C791 Task 1 2
C791 Task 1
Advantages and Disadvantages
Health information systems (HIS) are technology-based platforms for the storage and
legitimate dissemination of patient medical charts and records. They are on the opposite end of
the spectrum from the old style of paper charts and hand-written care notes. There can be
advantages and disadvantages for any HIS.
Some examples of advantages of any HIS begin with more reliable prescribing and health
history reconciliation. That is to say, with a computerized medical record it becomes easier and
more reliable to verify the medications patients are currently taking and conditions they are being
treated for. Cross referencing medications to determine any incompatibilities becomes easier as
well with medication contraindications and interactions built into the software. Another
advantage of an HIS is that is allows for real-time, up-to-date information on patients. Charting
at the bedside allows the provider the opportunity to input assessments immediately as they
happen. When the next user or provider looks at the electronic chart, that assessment is in the
record and available to be viewed. Real-time information can be crucial and even life-saving.
Some ambulance services around the country have the ability to transmit the 12-lead EKG of a
patient to the receiving hospital and decrease the wait time to cardiac intervention for a patient
having a heart attack (ems1.com, 2017). With an HIS, practices can be streamlined, therefore
reducing the overall cost of providing care, and increasing revenues (ahima.org, 2018).
Some disadvantages to an HER are technical glitches, time training staff for a new
implementation and cost. Technical problems can be found with any electronic device or
program, but the same glitches in an HIS can have some more severe implications. Delays in
accessing an electronic patient chart can potentially delay treatment because the medical provider
, C791 Task 1 3
is unable to view the patient’s record, including any lab results, radiology images or therapy
notes. Training staff to use a newly implemented HIS takes time, effort and cost. There needs to
be time invested in training the trainers, then training the staff. And then there is cost. Aside from
the staffing cost associated with the extensive training involved in an HIS implementation, the
start-up costs alone can be astronomical. They include the cost for the software, any equipment
updates, and the cost to convert all of the existing paper charts into electronic medical records.
This is not including any annual maintenance charges for the software and technical support. A
recent study of HIS implementations found that a typical multi-physician practice can expect to
spend approximately $162,000 for an HIS implementation alone
(medicaleconomics.modernmedicine.com, 2012). The same study found that a similar practice
could lose a significant revenue because they could only see about half their usual number of
patients due to staff needing extra time to learn their way around the computer software
(medicaleconomics.modernmedicine.com, 2014).
Usability
It is important that providers who take care of patients be able to easily use an HIS to
document. Clinicians and medical providers have the advantage of drop-down boxes for chart
input. Depending on the HIS system, drop down boxes can have static choices (those that are
unable to be changed), or free-text boxes, so the end user can input a unique response. This kind
of documentation creates a uniform way of charting, easily understood by any end user who
needs to review it. A disadvantage to drop-down boxes is when there are limited choices and
none fit what the clinician is trying to say in their charting. Another disadvantage is when the
predetermined questions in the chart are not asking what the clinician wants to answer. The
clinician ends up needing to create a narrative note, which is just the opposite of what the HIS is
