Health Information Technology Report to the President

 "Realizing the Full Potential of Health Information Technology to Improve Healthcare For Americans: The Path Forward"

This recently released report is a great overview of the current state of health IT and future plans. The report has a lot of valuable information for any health professional. It is incredibly relevant, takes action and delivers a solid plan for the future of health IT.


"The main objective of this report is to argue that if health information technology is to have a truly transformative effect, the Federal Government should push ambitiously toward a national health data infrastructure in which patient data are readily available to providers in real time, can be accessed in de-identified form by researchers and public health agencies, and in which a market for applications that enhance EHR usability and patient involvement can flourish, enabling a “network effect” that can spur further adoption. (11)"

The report begins by highlighting  the barriers that are currently limiting innovation and the creation of effective solutions to current health IT problems.

1. Current IT solutions slow to address non-administrative tasks in practice environment such as lab and imaging.
2. Usability of current EHR systems is very disconnected (no standards)
3. No existing architecture for Health Information Exchanges, discouraging sharing of information between medical providers
   
4. Misinformation about data security

Problems 1, 2, and 4 are quickly being addressed in the health IT field. AcuMedSoft's solutions can fully integrate lab results, imaging and other specialties. Additionally the patient-to-provider portal is key to developing an online relationship with the patient, which will be beneficial once the architecture is developed for large scale HIE. The usability of EHR systems is a constant battle, which requires strict attention to training upon implementation. Problem 4 is rooted in conflicting viewpoints on data security in the cloud and will get a blog post of its own.