International Journal of Electronic Healthcare最新文献

The Community Health Information System (CHIS) is an integrated, patient-centric, web-based application that assists all stakeholders in healthcare management. CHIS is a single sign-on portal that allows users to query an immense interconnected database of medical research, healthcare providers, regulations, nurses and physicians. A three member faculty team at Western Michigan University has developed a system prototype using a collection of technologies to deliver the content via a variety of interfaces such as the web, mobile devices, voice and kiosks. The focus of this paper is on the technical building blocks such as decision-making process, system models and functional components.

Interdisciplinary teamwork is essential in the delivery of hospice services. Hospice agencies in the USA are required by law to follow an interdisciplinary approach to patient care. The goal of this study is to assess the current level of technology use in hospice Interdisciplinary Team (IDT) meetings and identify the areas where technology can be utilised to address the challenges or barriers that IDT meetings face. We conducted a semistructured phone survey using purposive sampling based on US hospice utilisation rates. The representatives of 190 agencies participated. The findings indicate that technology is not widely used in team meetings. Less than half of the agencies report computer use during meetings. The respondents saw benefits in using technology to access patient records and medication lists and design the care plan. Technology can become a powerful tool if introduced to enhance the social and product function of a group process.

Some advocates of globalisation argue that a free market with little regulation is the best approach for achieving cost-effective healthcare. Healthcare, however, is different from other business activities in that it is typically less profit-driven; instead, it often involves the goal of providing equitable care to the underprivileged. Traditionally, the government has subsidised the expenses of delivering affordable healthcare to underserved communities. Because of the many recent advances in telecommunications technology, telemedicine has gained increasing attention. Teleradiology, in particular, is by far the maturest of all telemedicine disciplines and, thus, it may serve as a pivotal indicator of whether telemedicine on a global scale is feasible or not. In this paper, a prediction of the future landscape of globalised teleradiology operations is attempted based on the extrapolation of the historical trends in teleradiology practice as well as the growing pressure on federal and local governments to reduce their regulatory power under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).

The conflict between the sweeping power of technology to access and assemble personal information and the ongoing concern about our privacy and security is ever increasing. While we gradually need higher electronic access to medical information, issues relating to patient privacy and reducing vulnerability to security breaches surmount. In this paper, we take a legal perspective and examine the existing patchwork of laws and obligations governing health information in the USA. The study finds that as Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) increase in scope and dissemination, privacy protections gradually decrease due to the shortcomings in the legal system. The contributions of this paper are (1) an overview of the legal EMR issues in the USA, and (2) the identification of the unresolved legal issues and how these will escalate when health information is transmitted over wireless networks. More specifically, the paper discusses federal and state government regulations such as the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and judicial intervention. Based on the legal overview, the unresolved challenges are identified and suggestions for future research are included.

This study was designed to investigate the use of websites as a health education medium in Sri Lanka. Approximately 87.2% of the websites contained less than 100 webpages. The quality score was higher in the websites owned by local nonbusiness organisations compared to the websites owned by business organisations. Only 8.1% of the websites provided health education content for the general public as their main content. The total number of websites has not increased compared to the increase in internet usage in Sri Lanka during the last few years. The internet is an underutilised health education tool despite the growth of internet usage in Sri Lanka.

This paper proposes two models for evaluating Pharmacy Information Systems (PIS) on their user satisfaction, thereby exploring one of the major requirements in designing PIS for pharmacy networks. The first model is developed to measure pharmacies' satisfaction with their PIS and the second model is developed to specify the determinants of PIS satisfaction. Both models were validated by data from 142 members of a Dutch pharmacy chain. Based on the user satisfaction model, the explanatory model showed that Information Technology (IT) experience and knowledge are the most important drivers for pharmacies' PIS satisfaction. The implications for the evolution of PIS in pharmacy chains are discussed.

This paper presents a research model for investigating the relationship between organisational enablers and the Knowledge Transfer (KT) Performance (KTP) in the medical industry. The enablers include leadership, organisational culture, Information Technology (IT) and individual performance measurement, and KTP is determined by individual capability, organisational capability and product/service innovation. This paper chose professional medical personnel as the research subject to determine whether or not these enablers affect KT. The findings show that only leadership directly affects the KTP, with IT also impacting both organisational capability and product/service innovation. The implications of these findings are discussed based on interviews with experts and practitioners.

Electronic Personal Health Records (PHRs) has been perceived as the tool to empower consumers to become active decision-makers of their healthcare instead of leaving the decision to providers. However, there has been the lack of enthusiasm and adoption of PHRs. This paper examines the current healthcare climate and attempts to understand the major challenges associated with PHRs adoption. The paper-based and fragmented healthcare system is no longer appropriate for the digital economy of the 21st century. The integrated health information technology system is the solution to transform clinical practice to consumer centric and information driven. Tools such as PHRs are means to an end that provide better, safer and more affordable healthcare for consumers. However, there has been little research conducted to demonstrate PHR's tangible value, despite the widespread perceived value of these technologies. Although survey data reveals that there is a lack of awareness among the public, consumers are receptive to this concept, especially when a physician recommends it. Key issues in adopting PHRs and strategies for successful implementation of PHRs are discussed.

To date, the adoption and diffusion of technology-enabled solutions to deliver better healthcare has been slow. There are many reasons for this. One of the most significant is that the existing methodologies that are normally used in general for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) implementations tend to be less successful in a healthcare context. This paper describes a knowledge-based adaptive mapping to realisation methodology to traverse successfully from idea to realisation rapidly and without compromising rigour so that success ensues. It is discussed in connection with trying to implement superior ICT-enabled approaches to facilitate superior Chronic Disease Management (CDM).