Statement of Competency: PLO B

PLO B: Evaluate, manage, and develop electronic records programs and applications in a specific organizational setting

            Electronic Records Programs are often associated with healthcare and the creation and maintenance of patient records, also known as EHRs (Electronic Health Records), but the concept of an electronic record is fundamental to any business that maintains a database of customers, books, songs, etc. The electronic record is identified using a unique identifier code and described with metadata associated with the unique identifier in a relational database. These electronic records—describing patients, customers, books, songs, or any other real-world objects—are compiled into a database and become a way to create and continually update records about delineable things.

            Electronic databases are built using standardized coding languages and applications such as SQL (Structured Query Language) or Microsoft Excel or Access. These databases then become part of a larger Data Governance program in which electronic records are collected, organized, stored, analyzed, preserved, retrieved, and managed to ensure accuracy and security as well as legality and ethicality.

            Since the Obama administration’s HITECH (Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health) Act of 2009, the push to replace paper with EHRs has been mandated and supported by the federal government (Wikipedia, 2021); but it’s also just a superior system. HealthIT.gov lists numerous ways that Electronic Health Records (EHRs) transform health care by “improving all aspects of patient care” as well lowering health care costs and improving clinical decision making (2019).

            Given the necessity and proliferation of Electronic Health Records programs, a key skill for an informatician is knowing how to evaluate electronic recordkeeping software specific to the needs of an organization. In INFM 210: Health Informatics, we completed a lab assignment in which we evaluated an open-source Electronic Health Records system called OpenMRS.

The evaluation is in two parts:

Lab:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UmxItLxKrhyeeqGYufA1PSpF-OYnHlmM/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=115650387420842736404&rtpof=true&sd=true

Written Evaluation:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1BxqjS2TxXr8lpXnLDsFvk7ew-Lv8KyJv9f5e6H3qJjo/edit?usp=sharing

As you can see in the Lab Screenshots section, at first, the tool didn’t work at all. I sent screenshots and emails to the OpenMRS administrators and, as a result, the tool eventually was made usable again. After that initial speedbump, the lab exercise continued with us creating and updating records in OpenMRS and familiarizing ourselves with its features and capabilities.

In the Written Evaluation section, I elaborated on my experience evaluating the software by answering questions as though I was performing the evaluation for a small, health care organization.

            In addition to EHRs, the field of Informatics also aims to encourage and enable the implementation of Health Information Exchanges (HIEs) through which health care facilities can share patient data between hospitals, clinics, and doctors offices. An effective HIE greatly reduces duplicate lab tests. An article in the University of New Hampshire’s healthcare blog states that one in five hospital radiology tests are duplicates (DeMillo, 2015), and this alone wastes $20 billion annually. In a 2007 study, duplicate testing was found in 32% of cases studied. As surprising as it may seem, eliminating duplicate testing alone could go a long way toward, say, funding Medicare for All. Or at least reducing everyone’s healthcare costs. For my final presentation in INFM 210: Health Informatics, I made a presentation on implementing a Health Information Exchange (HIE) in a small healthcare facility:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1xidoyDsInGF67BkREosg8GKo2UmYNVCa/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=115650387420842736404&rtpof=true&sd=true

            But Informatics is not just about Health care. The skills and knowledge of Informatics can be applied to patients as well as to digital assets such as music recordings. In INFM 207: Digital Asset Management, we were tasked with developing a DAM system—including metadata, taxonomy, and workflow—for an organization that utilizes and manages digital assets. For my hypothetical organization, I chose a small record label: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1O7dhucEhRXrHL3e93Cd1ptlFbVZS0mnC/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=115650387420842736404&rtpof=true&sd=true

Evidence of competency for PLO B (as linked above):

References

DeMello, H. (2015, May 12). Doing away with duplicate testing can cut healthcare costs. Healthy UNH. https://www.unh.edu/healthyunh/blog/healthcare-consumerism/2015/05/doing-away-duplicate-testing-can-cut-healthcare-costs.

What are the advantages of electronic health records? HealthIT.gov. (2019, May 16). https://www.healthit.gov/faq/what-are-advantages-electronic-health-records.

Wikimedia Foundation. (2021, August 14). Health information technology for economic and CLINICAL Health Act. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_Information_Technology_for_Economic_and_Clinical_Health_Act.