The Virtual World - Another tool to bring doctors and patient together

There are literally hundreds of virtual worlds you can join online. For this blog post we are going to concentrate on the doctor-patient relationship and how Second Life's virtual world can expand upon the real-world relationship. But first, a quick rundown on "Second Life". I am by no means an expert but the class I am taking now has introduced me to SL and I am glad it did. SL is an online application where you can create an avatar and roam freely throughout the "virtual" world. If you purchase land you can create buildings much like you would in real life. It is free to sign up and look around you can check it out at http://secondlife.com/.

I think SL can be used in a number of ways to help expand on the current doctor-patient relationship. However I don't think it could be used in all areas. I think in therapy SL could be a wonderful tool. You can go in to SL and talk to someone while remaining completely anonymous. I have been to therapy before and the hardest part for me was actually getting in the door! I then spent the next 20 minutes in the waiting room hoping I didn't run into anyone I knew in my small town. That doesn't sound ideal does it? If there was an online forum this could have been avoided.

Second life could also be a great tool for physicians that take a more holistic approach to healing. A meditation class could be held on a remote, invite only, island where people could be guided through their issues by their leader. It would be a great place for women wanting a natural childbirth to talk with other women and ask physicians questions about the process. There are so many ways knowledge can be shared!

As you have probably noticed I leaned more towards the non diagnostic of medicine (for lack of a better phrase). This is of course because while anonymity makes people more apt to ask questions they could be embarrassed about in real life, it also means you never really know who you are talking to. Someone saying they have a PHD could just be someone that has dabbled in medicine. I could see someone gullible following advice from someone that isn't a physician and winding up much worse off. That being said, while SL can be and is a good tool for expanding doctor-patient relationships it is just a tool and I do not believe it can replace a real life 1 on 1 appointment with a licensed MD.

Here is a picture of my Avatar in a virtual hallucination clinic for a patient that is schizophrenic

I will be posting more on SL and Healthcare soon stay tuned....

Prime healthcare improving patient care with document management

 My parent company has implemented a document management application called forms fast throughout its 14 hospitals. Recently our CIO, Sreekant Gotti, submitted an article that ran on the Health Management Technology website regarding the implementation and its affect on patient care. The need for automation with forms is crucial with EHRs and HIS, and Prime was still relying on paper at all facilities until recently.

 Our leadership noticed that with hundreds of paper forms in use there were many potential pitfalls with a manual process. Mainly keeping documents current, consistent across facilities and following government and healthcare mandates. He wrote about the process of moving forward with document management software highlighting the following; finding the right partner, implementing the program, and the process in practice.

Finding the right partner

Prime decided on the main factors they were looking for in the software. They were looking for software that could cover all facilities which would help keep forms consistent and make administering the system easier. They wanted to be able to quickly update forms and be able to discard the old preprinted forms, saving time and money in the process.  After research Prime chose forms fast and started the process of implementation.

 Implementing the program

With Prime’s need to get a system in place a strict timeline was followed. IT staff was able to administer the program and assign rules to different staff groups making management easier. Leadership began training and were happy to discover staff could be trained in about 10 minutes per person and that the training was able to be done in groups instead of person to person. This also saved time and money. During the implementation Prime took advantage of the new system to update and standardize forms throughout the facilities. Old pre-printed forms were discarded and Prime was off and running with Forms Fast.

 The process in practice

The implementation of Forms fast now allows Primes employees to quickly pick out and print the correct forms or packets for each patient. These forms are printed with patient demographics, eliminating forms being mislabeled. There is also a barcode that prints on each page. After getting the appropriate signatures the papers can be electronically signed and the barcode tells the software where it should go in the EHR. This takes out the step where the form could be scanned into the incorrect account. Forms fast is allowing Prime to take several steps out of the forms process, labeling of forms and automatic upload into EHR being the main two that will defiantly affect patient care.

Sreekant tells that the ultimate reward is efficiency and patient safety. While the product is saving time and money the most important points are Forms Fasts ability to improve patient safety and quality.  “The health system’s IT efforts have decreased manual errors, helped to ensure accurate information and freed staff to spend more time with patients.”  Sreekant Gotti.

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to my blog!

My name is Kenna and I am currently enrolled in a Heath Informatics certification program at UCDavis. I am created this blog for one of my classes and will be blogging on Informatics issues. My main focus will be to be a middle ground between my fellow "computer geeks" and our always intriguing "clinicians". On this blog you will find information I think will help bridge the gap that some would call vast between these two professions. With the HITECH act clinicians no longer have the "option" to opt out of the techy side of things so we need to find a way to help them embrace these changes.

A little about my background...

I have been working at a Northern California hospital for almost 11 years. I started as a computer tech and have moved through the years to my current position of Clinical Systems Analyst. I grew up following my mom, an RN, around in the hospital that now employs me. In my current position I consider myself an advocate for the nurses, and IT voice that is always saying "but what makes it easier for the NURSING side". I am a new mom and just moved in to a new home this weekend! Life is good but a little crazy right now. I am happy to be learning more of the clinical side of things as I advance towards obtaining my health informatics degree.