Nursing Research and Informatics
Overview of the Care Continuum in the Selected Health Care System
The selected care continuum is ambulatory care. The medical care model provided on an outpatient basis and factors observation, diagnosis, intervention, treatment, as well as consultation. Besides, there may be rehabilitation services. Although ambulatory care provided outside the hospital environment, it incorporates advanced medical procedures and therapeutic technologies (Deimazar, Kahouei, Zamani, & Ganji, 2018). The care continuum denotes the health system’s strategy to expand the outpatient services into the community setting. Both physicians, as well as the patient, play an instrumental role in ambulatory care, indicating that one cannot adequately function without the support of the other party. The implication is that ambulatory care is not conducted in a medical facility requiring admission. It encompasses ambulatory wellness services meant to promote prevention as well as basic medical care (O’malley, Reschovsky, & Saiontz-Martinez, 2015). Consequently, diagnostic services can integrate as an essential part of the treatment or wellness program, including blood tests and x-rays.
Patient-care Technologies and How They Are Used Across the Care Continuum
Patient care technologies are highly utilized in ambulatory care continuum to minimize healthcare complications and lower readmission rates. For instance, ambulatory information systems have constantly evolved. Currently, they include the eligibility verification, accounts receivables module, electronic claim scrubbers, and advanced billing. The eagerness to utilize patient care technologies has resulted in the incorporation of electronic medical records as well as electronic prescribing (Mastal, 2018). Consequently, the care improvement framework entails the integration of the clinical systems with the ambulatory clinical data, an approach that would support communication in the process and ultimately capture the entire continuum of care. The ambulatory EMR vendors can pack more features readily used by the physicians as they contain ideal software that supports the meaningful use requirements (Deimazar et al., 2018). Consequently, fiber, DSL, and cable can be maximized to reach remote physician offices. The implication is that that ambulatory care continuum has a feature of technology convergence.
System Strengths and Weaknesses, Technology, and Change Management to Improve Patient Outcomes
The system has significant strengths, including minimal prospects of hospitalizations or readmissions, which stresses the efficiency of the model in the care provision process. The consideration has lessened the intensity of conditions readily prevented by prudent healthcare management, suggesting that technology in ambulatory care continuum results in improved quality of care (Bates, 2015). Weaknesses include the need to implement measures to ensure widespread adoption and safeguard patient information to avoid hacking attempts. Consequently, achieving the necessary technology and change management strategies is central to improved patient outcomes. For instance, the continual software update is needed to ensure that the system has appropriate vendor modifications to improve efficiency. Regular training is essential, as it will result in better optimization of the technology (O’malley et al., 2015). What is more, reflecting on feedback from the ambulatory nurses as well as patient perspectives is central towards the implementation of tailor-made solutions to enhance system efficiency.
Support of Effective Patient Care with Current Nursing and Informatics Theoretical Ideas
Current nursing and informatics theoretical ideas positively impact effective patient care. Notably, the right balance in the healthcare system emphasizes the role of technology in supporting the care provision process to enhance electronic documentation. The approach augments workflow and the overall care quality in ambulatory care settings (Mastal, 2018). Accordingly, it is possible to create, test, and continually improve new technological processes since information systems are design to assist nurses in providing timely and efficient care to the patients. The action plan ensures they can readily utilize their knowledge in providing quality care anchored on evidence-based practice for better outcomes in the long-term (Bates, 2015). Most effective method that help patient care is the outcome of the quality of life. Technology helps diagnosed and identified disorders that are unable to see vividly. For example, one could sustained a greater amount of time staying alive without their body physically doing the work by simply placing that person on a ventilator. Electronic patient records further communicate the patient’s condition, easing the process of organizing care delivery in line with the patient needs. This way of communication reduce errors made by nurses for patient care. Also with the advanced of technology when administering medication, helps regulate amount and time patient receive their meds. Technology advances so is the care given to patients whether it’s in term of communication where a machine finds a translator for different languages instantly, or in term of diagnosing where 3D pictures can be developed, or in term of biometrics where security healthcare information and cost efficient, technology impacts it from many different aspects.
Executive Summary
The current state of technology in ambulatory care continuum is continual advancement to keep up with emerging trends. Mobile technologies play an instrumental role by connecting patients in remote places with care providers (Deimazar et al., 2018). The same approach is apparent in telehealth, which complements mobile technologies in guaranteeing quality care to patients in diverse locations. Besides, there is the health information exchange (HIE), from which various personal health records are easily shared between care providers, including home health agencies, nursing care facilities, hospitals, and private practice physicians. Consequently, the proposed improvements entail harmonizing the core IT infrastructure to ensure interoperability between healthcares IT systems so that care provision between different providers is seamless (Mastal, 2018). Regular improvements are also necessary to improve system efficiency and ensure that healthcare organizations align with rapid technological changes to guarantee better outcomes in the long-term.
There are considerable risks in case these changes or improvements are ignored. Failure to embrace technological advances in ambulatory care will result in increased patient readmissions since care provision will not be characterized by accuracy and efficiency (O’malley et al., 2015). Consequently, care provision will not be seamless as tasks will not be adequately described, while the overall response time in case of an emergency will be low. A recommendation for further improvement will entail sourcing the services of an IT firm. Notably, this will impart the flexibility, effectiveness, and efficiency needed to select the services needed to complement the tasks performed by the IT staff in the organization. The IT provider will focus on ensuring that the technology, organizational, and business challenges are discreetly addressed (Deimazar et al., 2018). The action plan will result in superior provider support, improving overall care quality.
References
Bates, W. D. (2015). Health information technology and care coordination: The next big opportunity for informatics? Yearbook of Medical Informatics, 24(01), 11-14.
Deimazar, G., Kahouei, M., Zamani, A., & Ganji, Z. (2018). Health information technology in ambulatory care in a developing country. Electronic Physician, 10(2), 6319.
Mastal, M. (2018). Evolution of a Conceptual Model: Ambulatory Care Nursing. Nursing Economics, 36(6), 296.
O’malley, A. S., Reschovsky, J. D., & Saiontz-Martinez, C. (2015). Interspecialty communication supported by health information technology associated with lower hospitalization rates for ambulatory care–sensitive conditions. Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 28(3), 404-417.