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Background
The health care delivery system is going through a challenging pace of high cost and quality demands that need elementary modifications to remain practicable and provide quality care. The components of health care including hospitals, stakeholders, practitioners and medical institutions still require an explicit relationship to improve quality care (Kepros & Opreanu, 2009).
Quality assessment of healthcare targets to improve the care deliverance, affect the cost of services and enhanced transparency. Currently, these characteristics do not exist in healthcare worldwide though it seems that these are migrating towards the ambulatory services as well as other care settings (Chassin et al., 2010). It is assumed that academic medical institutions are the main pillar of healthcare in future. Thus, to sustain the quality delivery a basic understanding of key components is as much obligatory as creativity in designing advanced healthcare strategies with a mutual vision (Kepros & Opreanu, 2009).
The health care delivery system requires higher quality and affordable cost for every person. Nowadays numerous subsystems have been developed that has divided the quality of care according to the socio-economical status of patients (Jones & Bartlett, n.d.).
Key components of Healthcare Delivery system
A managed and successful healthcare delivery system prefers to fulfill patient’s requirements and expectations through responding instantly and improving the health condition at personal as well as social levels (World Health Organization, 2010). According to a report released by WHO, a well functioning system shields the populace against any health hazard and provide protection against the financial cost. Proffering unbiased admittance to quality care and encouraging people to take decisions regarding their health system are considerable components of any ultimate Healthcare Delivery system (World Health Organization, 2010)
Thesis statement
This essay emphasizes the current condition of healthcare delivery and challenges faced. It proposes a conceptual framework for technical and process based innovations in the healthcare industry. Technical innovations when combined with process innovations, will modernize the healthcare services. It presents a vision that suggests innovation as a motivating factor in the pursuit to establish equilibrium between cost suppression and care quality.
Technical Innovations
Medical Sciences have enhanced rapidly in the last five decades. The key challenge of healthcare that drags it little backward is its paper system. It slows the quality of service as it is very difficult to access the patient information and deliver it at a fast pace. Data estimates that U.S. spends around $600 billion per year in lab tests, and 70% of this money just got used up on paperwork. Paper records weaken the information sharing capabilities and healthcare providers become less active in the case of insufficiency of patient health record (Kepros & Opreanu, 2009; Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
This essay proposes technology innovations are mandatory to fasten and correct the delivery of quality care. Omachonu & Einspruch (2010) defined innovation as a deliberate introduction and implementation of unique ideas, related to products or process to any group or organization. The innovation aims to replace the old techniques of any process and appreciably benefit the individual, group, and community. Technology-based innovations have changed the scenario of every sector including healthcare (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
Healthcare industry has accepted technology in its every section such as procedures, surgeries, treatments and diagnosis though it still requires more efforts in networking. A communication gap exists between healthcare providers and patients. Security concerns regarding patient’s privacy and confidentiality have been a major reason for this deficit. Another big reason is that most healthcare units perform locally and thus the accepted change by them could not be acknowledged globally (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
The history of accepting technology has provided dramatic improvements in every sector. The revolutionary IT and its application in network security and successful transmission of data images globally will reform the health care industry. The technology-based innovations can be applied in many ways. First of all it will facilitate more offshore services. That will enable to deliver the healthcare services to underserved and unreachable locations. The concept of telemedicine has been initiated by U.S. Doctors. According to the experts, it will help in reducing the workloads and cost efficiency. Teleradiology is another innovative example that saves doctors time and solves the problem of scarcity of radio experts. These new concepts help older patients and patients in trauma situations that require emergency services (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
Incorporation of health information systems will facilitate fast access and global distribution of data. Often the difference in language and encryption in medical data make it difficult to read for another hospital. Any innovation or software that can transform the language for medical information into globally readable data will erase the conflict and assist in advanced treatments (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
IT implementation can be done to monitor drug safety and security at the global level. An international database relevant to drug safety has been highly acknowledged by people especially by travelers. However, it needs more enhancements. Nowadays many medical websites are available that present complete information on drugs, its purpose, and adverse effects. But a pharmaceutical database covering all the aspect linked to a drug is highly required that will help in addressing that communication gaps. Currently, Medwatch, (by FDA, U.S.) provides data on drugs, its adverse effects, and relevant issues (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
The implementation of EMRs (Electronic Medical Records) and Electronic health records (EHRs). EMR is a collection of all relevant medical and clinical data in any provider’s place while EHRs holds the complete patients history extracted from all providers’ involved in his care. EHRs provide interconnected information that is accessible by many units and more than one healthcare organization. These techniques save time through tracking patients’ record anytime and anywhere, his due screenings and visits, and monitoring the certain medical parameters. All these steps are helpful in improving the overall delivery of services in healthcare (Mann, 2015). Other considerable solutions are electronic Personal Health Record solution (ePHR), robotic rehabilitation therapy, and high definition TV signals or video scopes in surgery (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
Process Based Innovations
Innovations are revolutionary and transformational and disrupt older systems. Process-based innovations in health care industry create new opportunities, markets, and players through delivering spectacular significance to stakeholders of the industry. The procedural innovations involve improvement in production and delivery method of services. Process is a significant part of any operating organization through which it serves its customer. The consumer wants product or service, but behind this service is a detailed process that requires innovation.
Thus, the process innovation will emphasize to fasten and advance the delivery of care to patients along with a considerable boost in the value attained by any stakeholders (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
Summary and Discussion
The shortage of nurses’ further demands enhancement of such innovations globally. Our proposed model presents an intermixed strategy of technological innovations collaboratively with process innovations. Although healthcare research is based on evidence-based and quality care innovations, due to lack of global acceptance of any standard format the implemented innovations can not be acknowledged globally. Now the foremost challenge is the even dissemination of innovation.
The technological innovations based on IT, if implemented with process innovations can revolutionize the industry. The aim of this model will be reducing communication gap between patient and health providers. Through technology, the knowledge and awareness of patient on diseases, treatment, policies, and cost can be improved as well as it will help providers to understand the expectations and requirements of patients. The EMRs, EHRs, and other electronic data can facilitate the process and devoid any confusion and delay in service. The International Council of Nurses (ICN) has put forth an example of the technical approach in presenting the latest accepted innovations in the nursing sector as depicted in Figure 1 (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
Figure 1: A theoretical model of Innovation in Healthcare (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
The process of technical innovation is multi-dimensional and complicated, and it is necessary to understand the key stakeholders in this industry before implementing innovations. The Physicians, patients, Organizations, innovator companies and regulatory agencies are five stakeholders of the healthcare industry (Figure 1). All these have different expectations from the system. Physicians expect betterment in clinical outcomes; diagnosis and management while the needs of patients include refined experience, enhanced physiological well-being without any delay in service. Organizations focus on competence across in-home care, enhanced quality and productivity with cost containment. Regulatory Agencies assure the superior safety of patient with lowest risks and immediate response without delay (Omachonu & Einspruch, 2010).
Conclusion
Embracing innovations in healthcare will require mutual understanding of stakeholders, laws and policies. The focus of any well-functioning system should focus on six distinct principles of health care that include diagnosis, treatment, anticipation, education, research, and outreach. A healthcare model must accomplish all these principles to get successful, along with effectively providing quality of care, costs, security, competence, and outcomes. The idea of implementing process innovation with the technological innovations will deliver the best and prompt quality of care in the healthcare industry that will bridge the gap between health care providers and patients.
References
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Mann, D. (2015). Technology Plays Key Role in Health Care Reform. WebMD. Retrieved 12
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Omachonu, V. K., & Einspruch, N. G. (2010). Innovation in healthcare delivery systems: A
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