Healthcare IT Glossary

In an effort to cut down on the increasing number of patient injuries and deaths, the healthcare industry has been pressured to introduce Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) systems. While CPOEs were originally heralded as a cornerstone of improved patient safety (no more illegible prescriptions sent to hospital pharmacies), there are many studies (including a recent report in the Journal of the American Medical Association) which show that use of CPOEs might actually increase medical prescription errors. (read more) Read more...

The healthcare industry is constantly under pressure to reduce costs while at the same time providing higher quality care with fewer mistakes. However, due to increasingly complex treatment options and an ever-growing, ever-moving population, paper medical records have become outdated in modern medicine. A 2005 study conducted at Dartmouth University found that of $1.8 trillion spent on healthcare each year, about a third of the waste is on unnecessary tests, procedures and simple errors. Poor organization and incomplete or incorrect information is a direct cause of this waste. (read more) Read more...

Compared to other industries Heatlhcare is in the stone age when it comes to Information Technology (IT). However, with President Bush's call for the creation of a nationwide electronic health records system within the next 10 years, healthcare information technology (HIT) is now at the forefront of the minds of many healthcare IT professionals. (read more) Read more...

The HIPAA law, also known as the Kennedy-Kausbaum Act or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, was designed to protect health insurance for workers and families when they change or loose their jobs. HIPAA says that group health plans cannot deny application for coverage based solely on health status, basically giving workers who change or lose jobs better access to health insurance even when they have pre-existing conditions. The one area which HIPAA law does not cover is when moving from one individual health insurance plan to another. Individual health insurers can simply turn away applicants who have chronic health problems. (read more) Read more...