Topic 1:
The Internet and eHealth have taken healthcare to a whole new level, especially during the
pandemic. b The internet has made us more aware and paranoid at the same time. b We run to the
internet for everything and the diagnosis is always cancer. b The internet has forced some people
to visit the doctor more than they previously would have and made others more comfortable. b b
Internet health information has enhanced patient confidence in dealing with physicians, better
health choices and decision making, improved understanding of health conditions, and improved
communication with physicians (Hong & Turvey, 2015). b
I would like to believe that no one's life is as chaotic as mine, but I know that’s not true. b Imagine
your pharmacy not receiving your prescriptions and having to call over to your doctor's office to
ask for them to be sent again. b Well, that is what I did not have to do one Saturday. b I sent my
doctor a message via my patient portal (a form of eHealth). b A few hours later I received a
message back from her, and my script was ready before I was done running errands. b Now
working in the healthcare field for many years I know that this will not always happen, but I would
rather send a message than sit on the phone talking to a person at a call center who will send the
same message I could have sent. b Another form of eHealth in my example is electronic
prescriptions, which I believe is the best thing since sliced bread. b E-Prescribing is a prescriber's
ability to electronically send an accurate, error-free, and understandable prescription directly to a
pharmacy from the point of care - is an important element in improving the quality of patient care
(E-Prescribing, n.d.). E-Prescribing also cuts down on prescription forgery.
Topic 2:
Although each area is important, safety would be the most important area to focus on me. I say
this because overall the safety of the product should be the main concern. For example, the
Johnson and Johnson vaccine release date continued to be pushed back after Pfizer and Moderna
were released. There were rumors that the vaccine was not ready, but it was released. Shortly
after the FDA recalled the vaccine to undergo a further investigation into the cause of blood clots.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services that is responsible for ensuring the safety and effectiveness of drugs and
medical devices (What We Do | FDA, 2018). In addition to working with manufacturers to recall
problematic products and collecting reports on adverse events—injuries or side effects caused by
drugs, devices, and vaccines (Llamas, n.d.). Even though the FDA is supposed to ensure safety, we
have seen things recalled once someone's life has been affected, so this is why safety should be
the focus. b
The first topic I chose is clinical information systems. Clinical information systems are used for
accessing patient records, producing reports, and guiding clinical decision making (Shi,2018).
Clinical information systems and healthcare informatics influenced a new era of patient care. The
more medical facilities that acquired the information systems were able to provide improved
patient care and safety by having access to all the patients’ documents, reports, labs, and
procedures.
For the second topic, I believe that safety should be the most important area for focus, but due to
the high costs of medical equipment and procedures, cost is the most important at this time. The
United States is lucky to have many hospitals with many different machines to assist in treating
patients. Some countries such as Australia only have 14.5 MRI units per 1 million population
compared to the 39 units in the U.S; Canada only has 9.5 units, and the UK has 7.2 units
(Shi,2018). Medical equipment costs are high, which in turn drives up procedure costs.
References
Shi, L. (2018). Essentials of the U.S. Health Care System (5th Edition). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
https://wileyplus.vitalsource.com/books/9781284174144
E-Prescribing. (n.d.). CMS. Retrieved April 16, 2022, from https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/E-
Health/Eprescribing
Hong, T., & Turvey, C. (2015, June 11). The Impact of Internet Health Information on Patient
Compliance: A Research Model and an Empirical Study. NCBI. Retrieved April 16, 2022, from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4526934/
Hong, T., & Turvey, C. (2015, June 11). The Impact of Internet Health Information on Patient
Compliance: A Research Model and an Empirical Study. NCBI. Retrieved April 16, 2022, from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4526934/
Llamas, M. (n.d.). Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - Safety Guidelines. Drugwatch. Retrieved
April 16, 2022, from https://www.drugwatch.com/fda/
What We Do | FDA. (2018, March 28). US Food and Drug Administration. Retrieved April 16, 2022,
from https://www.fda.gov/about-fda/what-we-do
