AUTOMATION OF HEALTH INFORMATION
Real-World Case Questions:
A local internal medicine and cardiology practice has recently implemented their new EHR
system from Allscripts. Some relatively minor building renovations were required, and
additional hardware was installed. Extensive training sessions and onsite support staff
spent several months meeting with all users. Super users and managers were identified and
given additional training.
During the testing phases, there were several glitches that needed to be addressed. Because
of the practice’s long-standing relationship with a local hospital, they had to electronically
communicate seamlessly to coordinate ongoing patient care throughout the healthcare
continuum.
The EHR from Cerner is used by the hospital. Technology and software issues had to be
addressed to ensure interoperability so that complete patient information was transmitted
securely. The application of the HL7 messaging standards were evaluated for each system
and then the firewall and encryption software were adapted to meet data integrity and
secure transmission requirements per the required standards.
The patient portal for the physician practice had to be coordinated with the hospital’s EHR
so that patients were able to see information generated from their hospital admission. The
cardiologists and internal medicine physicians were incorporating this information into
their outpatient treatment plan. These issues have been addressed and care coordination
has become more efficient thanks in part to the new electronic processes incorporated into
both EHR systems.
QUESTIONS:
1. Explain what types of standards protect health data and information systems from
unauthorized access.
2. Discuss how this might hinder the access from legitimate authorized HCOs or other
sources.
Real-World Case Questions:
A local internal medicine and cardiology practice has recently implemented their new EHR
system from Allscripts. Some relatively minor building renovations were required, and
additional hardware was installed. Extensive training sessions and onsite support staff
spent several months meeting with all users. Super users and managers were identified and
given additional training.
During the testing phases, there were several glitches that needed to be addressed. Because
of the practice’s long-standing relationship with a local hospital, they had to electronically
communicate seamlessly to coordinate ongoing patient care throughout the healthcare
continuum.
The EHR from Cerner is used by the hospital. Technology and software issues had to be
addressed to ensure interoperability so that complete patient information was transmitted
securely. The application of the HL7 messaging standards were evaluated for each system
and then the firewall and encryption software were adapted to meet data integrity and
secure transmission requirements per the required standards.
The patient portal for the physician practice had to be coordinated with the hospital’s EHR
so that patients were able to see information generated from their hospital admission. The
cardiologists and internal medicine physicians were incorporating this information into
their outpatient treatment plan. These issues have been addressed and care coordination
has become more efficient thanks in part to the new electronic processes incorporated into
both EHR systems.
QUESTIONS:
1. Explain what types of standards protect health data and information systems from
unauthorized access.
2. Discuss how this might hinder the access from legitimate authorized HCOs or other
sources.
