NURS FPX 8012 Assessment 3 SAFER Guides and Evaluating Technology Usage

Seeking guidance for your NURS FPX 8012 Assessment 3? Our team of experts is available to assist you. Contact us today for support.

The utilisation of information and communications technology devices to upgrade the health services system is a scenario that opens up opportunities for improvement of patient care, efficiency, and quality of health outcomes. In this particular evaluation, we analyse the HealthIT SAFER Guides application as a tool for evaluating the adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) within the environment of a healthcare institution. By reviewing positive practices and hazards reported after screening using the SAFER Guides, we can develop critical lessons about the complexity of technology adjustment and use in healthcare facilities.

Defining Proposed Informatics to Implement as Part of Change Practice

The suggested technology/informatics approach should include using an Electronic Health Record (EHR) system to address the realised healthcare system through the information technology area. A key driver of the initiative is the need for an improved documentation process and communication among healthcare providers; thus, the ultimate goal is to improve the quality of patient care.

• Efficiency Enhancement:

  The objectives of introducing an EHR are to facilitate and automate administrative functions such as scheduling appointments, managing patients’ records, claim verification, and so on, thus minimising the amount of administrative work and giving providers more time to concentrate on delivering quality care to their patients (Upadhyay & Hu, 2022).

• Interoperability Improvement:

EHR can be linked to other healthcare systems and facilities. This enhances the easy sharing of patient information across different locations, improving service delivery continuity and reducing risks related to medical error actors such as incomplete or inaccurate information from other doctors.

• Quality of Care Enhancement:
  

  Implementing an EHR system empowers healthcare providers with updated and complete patient information. Thus, it ensures that doctors make more informed decisions, develop individualised treatment plans, and notice the onset of adverse effects earlier, ultimately leading to improved patient outcomes.

• Patient Engagement:

EHR streamlines patients’ involvement in their healthcare management by utilising patients’ access to portals and e-communication channels. This includes monitoring treatment plans, preventive care, and active participation. This promotes treatment adherence and respect for the patient as a partner in their healthcare decisions. Optimised EHR system implementation can fulfil most clinic objectives, including quality of service, interoperability, and efficiency, providing cutting-edge changes in the healthcare sector (Kawamoto et al., 2021).

SAFER Guides’ Findings Regarding High-Performance Areas

According to the SAFER Guides standard of the evaluated healthcare environment, we have identified areas where the implemented technology/informatics system goes well regarding the existing practices and standards. One significant aspect that came to the notice was the clinic’s sturdy infrastructure for data safety and privacy issues, which aligns with or goes beyond the recommendations in the SAFER guides. For instance, the clinic carried out stringent entry permissions, cryptographic protocols, and regular system security checkups to protect the patients’ personally identifiable information in the EHR (Dash et al., 2019). The performance assessment of SAFER Guides by the technology revealed strong data analytics skills in the system, which resulted in the collection, analysis, and display of essential performance metrics (Aldoseri et al., 2023). For example, the clinic monitors variables, including the average waiting time for appointments, vaccination rates, and chronic disease management metrics, to identify the areas of poor performance and provide the strategic decision-makers with the information. Through the use of data-driven knowledge, the clinic has adopted a systematic approach to improving the facility’s efficiency and ensuring the correct and on-time path of the process.

SAFER Guides’ Findings Regarding Risk Areas

In the Scorecard for Assessment Tool in Future Environments Evaluation process, we came across several issues with the proposed technology/informatics solution within the healthcare environment in which it was being implemented. To get through the disruptions of workflow and change, one risk that can be considered is the resistance of healthcare practitioners. Aside from the new processes and technologies, the EHR setting had a positive impact, but the assessment showed some of the challenges in the adaptation. For instance, there needed to be more clarity on the fact that these new systems would take time to learn and cause some drop in productivity when shelled out. These obstacles associated with resistance to change might be the reason for the lack of successful adoption and the use of the EHR system, as well as the impeding of its ability to affect changes in patient care and operational efficiency.

Not only did SAFER Guides portray the EHR implementation process, but it also revealed various staff training and support deficiencies concerning the new EHR system, presenting other challenges to a seamless implementation. More training resources or adequate support mechanisms must be needed to prevent the system from being utilised suboptimally, resulting in errors, mismanagement of resources, and dissatisfaction among health workers (Christensen et al., 2021). For example, one can observe frontline staff needing help navigating the EHR interface or improving at implementing patient data precisely. As stated above, this can necessarily lead to compromised quality and safety of service. With the necessary training and continued provision of these support services, these challenges might remain relatively high, thus lowering the implemented technology/information system initiative’s success. 

In addition, the issues related to the EHR architecture’s deficiency in interacting with external healthcare institutions and systems were emphasised. Even though the clinic has attempted to include the EHR system with some local labs and stores, the interoperability challenges that persist with other healthcare institutions must be addressed (Tsai et al., 2020). For example, data structure variations and communication issues can cause system structures that will bar the flow of patient information across various parties, such as health centres and other stakeholders, resulting in fragmented care and even becoming dangerous to patients.