Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantages and Disadvantages
The collection of patients’ data is one of the most paramount aspects in the healthcare field. Medical data is essential for doctors to analyze the patient’s situation and illness and then to find a
possible cure for it. In the past, patient records used to create large amounts of paperwork because everything was on paper and pen. Accessing past records was troublesome. However, with
the advent of digitalisation, the medical information of patients can be keyed into a cloud-based, digitized system. This has provided extraordinary ease for specialists, patients, and medical
billers to access with a click of a button, from anywhere at anytime.
Medical errors are an increasing public concern as they are repeated constantly and are inevitable parts of the results of human performance. According to official Starfield, and the American
Institute of Medicine (IOM), medical errors in U.S. hospitals and healthcare institutions are the third leading cause of death and nearly 98,000 annual deaths occur due to medical errors in
hospitals. Fortunately, technology has facilitated the development of systems that are proven to reduce medical errors and save more lives. The clinical Decision Support (CDS) system
provides the health care professional with medical information and patient-specific information.
The use of technology can increase patient engagement, providing insight to help create hyper-targeted, personalized health and wellness plans. Devices in the form of wearables like fitness
bands and other wirelessly connected devices like Fitbits can monitor one’s blood pressure and Electrocardiograph (ECG), giving patients and specialists access to personalized information.
These devices can depict calorie count, exercise checks, appointments, blood pressure variations, etc. Specialists can keep track of patients’ health more efficaciously, such as their adherence
to treatment plans, etc. This is especially pertinent for elderly patients and those living alone, where their family members or concerned healthcare providers will be promptly alerted if any
abnormality is detected. As such, such technological gadgets ensure that patients enjoy superlative care, enhancing the healthcare experience and quality for all.
Patient education takes on an imperative role in healthcare, and specialists are embracing technologies that can help better inform and engage patients. According to the results of a
recent survey of 200 U.S. physicians conducted by PatientPoint and Digital Health Coalition, more than 75% of physicians believe that leveraging patient education and engagement
technology can help improve the patient experience. 95% of respondents also reported that they were currently using engagement technology tools to educate and engage with patients.
Technology has provided softwares and applications that present customized health education information to patients based on their specific needs and conditions.
5. Reduction in costs
The reduction in medical errors directly reduces costs for both the practitioners and patients. By leveraging technology to reduce diagnosis and prescription errors While the shift from paper
to EMRs in clinics can reduce the costs of outpatient care by 3 percent. This is estimated to be $5.14 in savings per patient each month. A cloud EMR significantly reduces the usage of paper
in practice and cost in various other errors.
DISADVANTAGES