- It is said, “You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” Think about
healthcare as a future health information professional and as a user of
healthcare services. Do you agree with the above statement? Why or why
not? Explain your answer in terms of expectations
from healthcare facilities and providers nowadays.
Note: Think about something as simple as your performance in a class.
How do you know you need improvement? You may identify a need to
improve when you see that your grade is below the maximum or below your
personal goal, right? So you actually need to see
the number of points along with an explanation of why it is low. Then,
you can do something to improve it. Now make your analogy for
healthcare. - Think about an aspect of healthcare that you are familiar with or
any other aspect of school or life in general that needs improvement.
After a brief description of your miniscenario, discuss the following.- What are the structure indicators for the selected scenario? Identify some inputs.
- What are the process indicators? Explain the process.
- What are the outcome indicators? Identify some of the outputs.
- Which indicators do you think need to change to make an improvement?
Expert Solution Preview
Introduction: As a medical professor in charge of creating college assignments and answers for medical college students, evaluating student performance, and providing feedback through examinations and assignments, it is important to consider the role of healthcare information management and its impact on patient care. In this answer, we will discuss the importance of measuring healthcare information for future health information professionals and users of healthcare services.
1. It is important to agree with the statement, “You can’t manage what you don’t measure,” as measuring healthcare information is critical to better understand the quality of care provided to patients. Today, healthcare facilities and providers are required to collect and report data on various quality measures, including patient outcomes, adherence to clinical guidelines, and patient satisfaction scores, among others. Without measuring the data and utilizing healthcare information management practices, healthcare providers cannot effectively identify areas for improvement and provide better quality care to their patients.
For example, imagine a patient is admitted to the hospital with a chronic condition. Without measuring healthcare information, healthcare providers cannot determine if the patient needs additional care or identify any issues with the treatment plan. However, by utilizing healthcare information management practices, healthcare providers can easily track the patient’s progress and identify areas that require improvement. The measurement of healthcare information is critical to effective healthcare delivery.
2. An aspect of healthcare that needs improvement is medication safety. Currently, medication errors are a common occurrence in healthcare settings that can lead to adverse reactions or even death. Thus, healthcare providers need to focus on improving medication safety to enhance patient care outcomes.
Structure indicators for this scenario could include the resources available to healthcare providers, such as the electronic health record system or medication dispensing machines. Input indicators could include the number of patients receiving medication, the number of medications prescribed, and the frequency of medication errors. Process indicators could focus on the steps to prevent medication errors, such as ensuring proper medication dispensing and administration, using standardized protocols, and educating healthcare providers on medication safety practices. Outcome indicators for medication safety could include the decrease in the number of medication errors, improvement in patient outcomes, and enhanced patient satisfaction scores.
To improve medication safety, healthcare providers must focus on enhancing their process indicators, such as providing ongoing training on medication safety practices and using technology to prevent medication errors. By implementing these changes, healthcare providers can improve patient safety and enhance the delivery of quality healthcare services.