Caring in a technological world Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Caring in a technological world - Assignment Example Accurate documentation and integration of medical treatments and confidentiality is a pre requisite for the nursing staff as it endeavors to promote effective communication. Informatics plays a major role in communication in health care today. Use of cell phones and internet as tools for communication between physicians and patients is useful. It makes the patients to make informed decisions and focus on questions that they seek to ask their physicians because they provide written texts. They are also efficient because they provide a mode of communication though both parties may not be present at the same time (Ball, 2000). Research in the last decade showed that nearly 100,000 people die annually in the U.S.A due to medical errors (Ball, 2000). The introduction of medical informatics has led to the steep decline of these numbers. The technology can be used in diagnoses and treatments of patients. The invention of the COSTAR (Computer Stored Ambulatory Record) shows improvement in cases of misdiagnosis as this application software has an electronic patient that reminds clinicians and physicians about the guidelines of medical practice (Ball, 2000). There are also computerized programs that assist the physicians on the line of proper antibiotics to be prescribed. Processing prescriptions through this system ensure that the possibility of errors is reduced by over 45% (Ball, 2000). Managing knowledge involves proper dissemination of intrinsic and valued information after its acquisition. This information can be patient specific or evidence based. Examples of such information include electronic medical records and administrative (Ball, 2000). The ability to put into use the knowledge derived from informatics is the determinant of success of these systems. Health care information should be managed to promote confidentiality and the integrity of such data. These data should only be accessible to the appropriate individuals.