Understanding HIT Environment Worksheet (Assignment 1)
D516 WGU A1 understanding hit environment
worksheet_Karina Clay
Instructions:
This worksheet will be used to recommend strategies for adopting a new HIT governance
plan to support the development and management of population health management
initiatives for Paducah Health Medical System (PHMS) as the organization transitions to a
value-based model. The worksheet includes the following components:
• assess the goals and priorities for population health management for PHMS
• assess end-user needs for redeveloping the current HIT system to one that supports
the value-based model
• forecast potential changes in needs and future developments for HIT
• recommend strategies to guide existing and future HIT systems’ projects
This worksheet will form part of the HIT strategy for PHMS that you will create in the
assessment.
Goals and Priorities of Population Health Management
1. Describe how HIT systems improve care. As PHMS transitions toward a value-
based model through its affiliation with Lourdes Hospital, how will the new HIT
system support improved care coordination between teams and across departments?
The new Healthcare Information Technology (HIT) system will support improved
care coordination in several ways. Most current Electronic Health Records Systems
(EHRS) function on the HL7 platform which is a messaging standard that enables
clinical applications to exchange data. This will allow PHMS to participate in Health
Information Exchanges (HIEs) with other healthcare providers in the area, such as
Lourdes Hospital. A new EHRS will allow all providers in the network to share a
patient’s entire medical record, regardless of which department provided the
services. Another improvement with the new EHRS is the ability to collaborate with
providers outside of the internal system using Peer to Peer (P2P) networking.
This will allow providers to transfer files between their systems as they work
together on patient care. Having providers share information will reduce duplication
of labs and other diagnostic services as well as reduce delays in care resulting from
not having real-time information available. Lastly, the new HIT system will provide
patients will real-time access to their medical records. This will reduce the number
of phone calls and emergency visits patients make when they do not have access
to their records. It will also serve as a patient education tool by providing them with
relevant materials and videos related to their diagnoses.
PHMS will achieve its goals of improving customer value, driving down costs of
care, minimizing hospital readmissions, improving access, and providing population
health management support. It will allow management and providers to scale their
population health initiatives to support to maximum number of patients (Lewis,
2016).
2. Identify the role of HIT in quality improvement. How will the new HIT system
facilitate enhanced development of continuous quality improvement programs?
The role of HIT in quality improvement is significant. In today’s environment, it is
very difficult to effectively measure quality improvement without a robust HIT
infrastructure to support. The HIT system should allow management to evaluate the
practice in real-time, knowing immediately if there have been changes in patient
care trendsD516
and a1 understanding
outcomes. hit HIT
A good environment worksheet_Karina
system allows reports to Clay
be run in the
, Understanding HIT Environment Worksheet (Assignment 1)
morning and then again in the afternoon on the same patient population to
determine the effectiveness of the services provided. For example, a primary care
quality improvement initiative measuring the percentage of women of a certain age
who receive mammograms could be run in the morning on the patients scheduled
with appointments and then again at the end of the day to determine in
mammograms were done on the women who needed them. Also, the new HIT
system will allow for implementation of the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and
Information Set (HEDIS) measures, which is one of the most widely used
performance improvement tools (National Committee for Quality Assurance, n.d.).
3. Evaluate HIT systems and patient engagement. How will the new HIT system
support each of the following outcomes?
a. increased patient uses of technology and patient access to data
b. improved care continuity through electronic communication with providers
c. coordinated patient-centered care across the organization
a. The new HIT system will include a patient portal that gives patients full access
to their PHI as well as health education information based on their diagnoses
and chronic conditions. Patients will be able to send messages to any member
of their healthcare team including providers, nurses, specialists, and other
support staff such as nutrition and tobacco cessation counselors. Because
patients will have access their data, they can view trends in their vitals such as
BMI, HbA1c, and lab results as well. This will empower the patients and ensure
they are active participants in their healthcare decisions.
b. The new HIT system will support improved care continuity through electronic
communication with providers with the P2P (Peer to Peer) network which allows
all of the providers participating in a patient’s care access to all of the same
information. Providers will be able to see recent labs, procedures, and
diagnostic images which will expedite the process of the patient receiving
proper care.
c. The new HIT system will support coordinated patient-centered care across the
organization by utilizing a CDSS (Clinical Decision Support System) module. This
module will identify care gaps in the patient’s health record and provide
information on related referrals and care plans. If the record notes a patient has
been referred to a specialist, other providers who are part of the patient’s care
team will know to look for the results of that referral.
4. Discuss implementing mobile technology. How will the new HIT system be able to
support monitoring of the significant chronic disease conditions present in rural Paducah
County? What challenges and opportunities will exist for implementing mobile
technology to monitor and address these disease conditions?
The new HIT system will interface with the platforms of many medical device
manufacturers. Patients will be able to transmit data using the patient portal. For
example, a patient who has a Fitbit and a blood pressure monitor can configure the
apps on their phones for those devices to share that information with their patient
portal app. This will get the information back to the patient’s care team in real time
so that they can evaluate the patient’s status and compliance. One of the
challenges in this area will be the patient’s tech savviness. If patients are not
familiar with apps and syncing data, there may be some initial challenges getting
everything set up. However, this also presents another opportunity to educate the
patient on how embracing the technology can help them take control of their
health. Another challenge with mobile technology is connectivity. It the cases that
use apps, the patient will need to have reliable wireless phone access. They will
D516 a1 understanding hit environment worksheet_Karina Clay
D516 WGU A1 understanding hit environment
worksheet_Karina Clay
Instructions:
This worksheet will be used to recommend strategies for adopting a new HIT governance
plan to support the development and management of population health management
initiatives for Paducah Health Medical System (PHMS) as the organization transitions to a
value-based model. The worksheet includes the following components:
• assess the goals and priorities for population health management for PHMS
• assess end-user needs for redeveloping the current HIT system to one that supports
the value-based model
• forecast potential changes in needs and future developments for HIT
• recommend strategies to guide existing and future HIT systems’ projects
This worksheet will form part of the HIT strategy for PHMS that you will create in the
assessment.
Goals and Priorities of Population Health Management
1. Describe how HIT systems improve care. As PHMS transitions toward a value-
based model through its affiliation with Lourdes Hospital, how will the new HIT
system support improved care coordination between teams and across departments?
The new Healthcare Information Technology (HIT) system will support improved
care coordination in several ways. Most current Electronic Health Records Systems
(EHRS) function on the HL7 platform which is a messaging standard that enables
clinical applications to exchange data. This will allow PHMS to participate in Health
Information Exchanges (HIEs) with other healthcare providers in the area, such as
Lourdes Hospital. A new EHRS will allow all providers in the network to share a
patient’s entire medical record, regardless of which department provided the
services. Another improvement with the new EHRS is the ability to collaborate with
providers outside of the internal system using Peer to Peer (P2P) networking.
This will allow providers to transfer files between their systems as they work
together on patient care. Having providers share information will reduce duplication
of labs and other diagnostic services as well as reduce delays in care resulting from
not having real-time information available. Lastly, the new HIT system will provide
patients will real-time access to their medical records. This will reduce the number
of phone calls and emergency visits patients make when they do not have access
to their records. It will also serve as a patient education tool by providing them with
relevant materials and videos related to their diagnoses.
PHMS will achieve its goals of improving customer value, driving down costs of
care, minimizing hospital readmissions, improving access, and providing population
health management support. It will allow management and providers to scale their
population health initiatives to support to maximum number of patients (Lewis,
2016).
2. Identify the role of HIT in quality improvement. How will the new HIT system
facilitate enhanced development of continuous quality improvement programs?
The role of HIT in quality improvement is significant. In today’s environment, it is
very difficult to effectively measure quality improvement without a robust HIT
infrastructure to support. The HIT system should allow management to evaluate the
practice in real-time, knowing immediately if there have been changes in patient
care trendsD516
and a1 understanding
outcomes. hit HIT
A good environment worksheet_Karina
system allows reports to Clay
be run in the
, Understanding HIT Environment Worksheet (Assignment 1)
morning and then again in the afternoon on the same patient population to
determine the effectiveness of the services provided. For example, a primary care
quality improvement initiative measuring the percentage of women of a certain age
who receive mammograms could be run in the morning on the patients scheduled
with appointments and then again at the end of the day to determine in
mammograms were done on the women who needed them. Also, the new HIT
system will allow for implementation of the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and
Information Set (HEDIS) measures, which is one of the most widely used
performance improvement tools (National Committee for Quality Assurance, n.d.).
3. Evaluate HIT systems and patient engagement. How will the new HIT system
support each of the following outcomes?
a. increased patient uses of technology and patient access to data
b. improved care continuity through electronic communication with providers
c. coordinated patient-centered care across the organization
a. The new HIT system will include a patient portal that gives patients full access
to their PHI as well as health education information based on their diagnoses
and chronic conditions. Patients will be able to send messages to any member
of their healthcare team including providers, nurses, specialists, and other
support staff such as nutrition and tobacco cessation counselors. Because
patients will have access their data, they can view trends in their vitals such as
BMI, HbA1c, and lab results as well. This will empower the patients and ensure
they are active participants in their healthcare decisions.
b. The new HIT system will support improved care continuity through electronic
communication with providers with the P2P (Peer to Peer) network which allows
all of the providers participating in a patient’s care access to all of the same
information. Providers will be able to see recent labs, procedures, and
diagnostic images which will expedite the process of the patient receiving
proper care.
c. The new HIT system will support coordinated patient-centered care across the
organization by utilizing a CDSS (Clinical Decision Support System) module. This
module will identify care gaps in the patient’s health record and provide
information on related referrals and care plans. If the record notes a patient has
been referred to a specialist, other providers who are part of the patient’s care
team will know to look for the results of that referral.
4. Discuss implementing mobile technology. How will the new HIT system be able to
support monitoring of the significant chronic disease conditions present in rural Paducah
County? What challenges and opportunities will exist for implementing mobile
technology to monitor and address these disease conditions?
The new HIT system will interface with the platforms of many medical device
manufacturers. Patients will be able to transmit data using the patient portal. For
example, a patient who has a Fitbit and a blood pressure monitor can configure the
apps on their phones for those devices to share that information with their patient
portal app. This will get the information back to the patient’s care team in real time
so that they can evaluate the patient’s status and compliance. One of the
challenges in this area will be the patient’s tech savviness. If patients are not
familiar with apps and syncing data, there may be some initial challenges getting
everything set up. However, this also presents another opportunity to educate the
patient on how embracing the technology can help them take control of their
health. Another challenge with mobile technology is connectivity. It the cases that
use apps, the patient will need to have reliable wireless phone access. They will
D516 a1 understanding hit environment worksheet_Karina Clay
