wk6A......Please read everything I attached.

Feasibility Study Concept Paper

Malodree Johnson

MHA 618 Health Economics

Instructor: Judy Roberts

December 3rd 2018

Introduction

Today, we are living in an environment where every movement and makes that we make throughout our daily lives is purely propounded by technical advancements. To be very precise, we are living in a technological age where everything that is being done is effected through the use of technology. In the healthcare, I would opt and suggest for the implementation of electronic health records (EHR) system in order to improve the quality of healthcare delivery among patients with various health issues. As a health administrator of a health facility, I have the responsibility of carrying out all the managerial functions which include planning, organizing, directing, disseminating information and also coordinating healthcare services for the healthcare facility (Forbes, 2014). This means that I carry the responsibility of taking care of all the hospital staff in order to ensure that they deliver the best. In order to achieve this, I have to make all the necessary efforts to ensure that my staff is provided with all the necessary resources that will enable them to work effectively. One way of ensuring this is through the provision of a good working environment.

I think implementing an effective Electronic Health Record (EHR) system would be very important for me and the entire healthcare facility since the system would play a significant role in ensuring a smooth running of the activities. When more people enroll in various health insurance, the more the healthcare facility would require more assistance. The only way through which the healthcare would get help from is through the implementation of an Electronic Health Record system. One way through which the EHR can improve the quality of healthcare is by increasing the participation of patients which gives them an opportunity to get involved with their care. Through the EHR, the patients and doctors will be able to communicate easily and share important information regarding the health condition of the individual. Due to problems of decision making in many healthcare facilities, the implementation of HER would act as a tool for making good decisions within the healthcare facility. An EHR similarly provides clinical alerts and reminders and the necessary information that will help the registered nurses to give the most appropriate medical assistance to their patients (Wager, Lee, & Glaser, 2013).

Reasons for the Feasibility

The main purpose for carrying out this feasibility would be to come up with the most reliable access that is able to complete patient health information in the healthcare facility to promote a more safe and effective care. With the adoption of the electronic health record systems (EHRs), all the healthcare providers would be in a position to give not only the best but also quality care to their patients since an EHR system would provide all the necessary information that is required. Therefore, the implementation of an effective Electronic health record would improve healthcare outcomes among patients suffering from various health conditions (Hayes, 2015).

The scope of the Feasibility

The main scope of this feasibility would be solely on the health information systems, provided that it gives guarantees patients with the best treatment that they want.

Objectives

This feasibility has three major objectives. They include:

I. To increase patient access to the physicians, for example, registered nurses and doctors

II. To increase the number of patients receiving alerts on their health conditions

III. To increase the level of education among many patients in the healthcare

Method used

In one of the previous class attended, I learned on the main steps that should be followed in order to implement an effective Electronic Health Record system in an organization. For my case, I think I would employ the system development lifecycle abbreviated as SDLC in order to develop a system that will provide the healthcare facility with all that is necessary to bring about efficiency and effectiveness. The SDLC is a process that an organization follows during planning, selection, implementation, and evaluation of the healthcare information system. I would seek to use this process so that the system developed would be attuned to all the systems that have already been put in place within the facility. An SDLC model follows four steps. The steps include planning and analysis, designing, implementation and finally support and evaluation (Rohr, 2012).

During planning, I would identify the concerns that the present system has so that I can make all the necessary improvements required. I will check whether I have all the necessary resources to buy the new system. Before making any purchasing decision, I would conduct some analysis to check whether the system is able to meet the current needs of the facility. During the second stage, I would consider all the alternatives available for me to make the right choice of the system to use. Here, I will consider the cost of the system since I don’t have to buy a system that will exploit the resources available. The third step which I think is very paramount is the implementation stage. Here, I have to involve every stakeholder in this stage. This will help in reducing resistance among the staff members of the facility. It is at this stage where the staff have to undergo through some training programs to ensure that they are conversant with the system. Finally, support and evaluation where I will be able to know whether the system has been useful or not. Does it serve the right purpose? If not the necessary improvements have to be made immediately (Fottler, & Lanning, 1986).

Time and Resources

With the enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the U.S has invested heavily in Health Information Technology by encouraging every healthcare facility to adopt the use of IT in all their operations. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has given an opportunity to many healthcare providers to invest in various forms of HIT by providing them with a lot of financial incentives. This has encouraged various providers to invest this money in the implementation of EHRs in order to improve the quality of care among their patients (National Learning Consortium, 2013).

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

• An improvement in patient care would be a major strength.

Weaknesses

• One main constraint that may hinder EHR system implementation would be financed. The Initial cost of this system would be very high. It also requires money to train the staff. Another problem would be the maintenance cost.

Opportunities

• The implementation of EHRs would improve patient care delivery and quality care.

Threats

• Privacy breaches would be a major threat.

Areas of Feasibility

Technical

There needs to regularly maintain an EHR system to ensure efficiency.

Economic

Implementation of the EHR system would be costly.

Legal Requirements

The implementation of the EHR systems do not have to violate the legal requirements required. Organizations that would wish to implement an EHR system have to follow all the HIPAA privacy provisions.

Marketing

Once I have implemented an Electronic health record system in the healthcare facility, I would choose the most appropriate kind of marketing strategy for use. For example, the use of social media. I would highlight some advantages that patients would enjoy when they visit the facility for the services.

In conclusion, I think the implementation of an effective Electronic Health Record system in healthcare will play an important role in bringing a lot of benefits to both patients and the practitioners. For example, through an EHR system, the practitioners are able to get the necessary information on their patients that will help them give the right medical assistance to them. The system will also save a lot of time since many things will not be done in a manual way. It also acts as a good decision-making model within healthcare. Therefore, every healthcare should make efforts to implement an effective EHR system.

References

Forbes. (2014, December 15). The top health industry trends to watch in 2015 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/fRym_jyuBc0

Fottler, M. D., & Lanning, J. A. (1986). A comprehensive incentive approach to employee health care cost containment. California Management Review, 29(1), 75-94. Retrieved from the EBSCOhost database.

Hayes, T. O. (2015). Are electronic medical records worth the costs of implementation?

National Learning Consortium. (2013). Continuous quality improvement (CQI) strategies to optimize your practice. Retrieved from Health It: https://www.healthit.gov/sites/default/files/tools/nlc_continuousqualityimprovementprimer.pdf

Retrieved from American Action Forum: https://www.americanactionforum.org/research/are-electronic-medical-records-worth-the-costs-of-implementation/

Rohr, R. (2012). Cost control: The new frontier of medical management. Physician Executive, 38(4), 82-83. Retrieved from the EBSCOhost database.

Wager, K. A., Lee, F. W., & Glaser, J. P. (2013). Health care information systems: A practical approach for health care management (3rd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass