Electronic Health Record

  

 An electronic health record (EHR) (also electronic patient record or computerised patient record) is an evolving concept defined as a systematic collection of electronic health information about individual patients or populations. It is a record in digital format that is capable of being shared across different health care settings, by being embedded in network-connected enterprise-wide information systems. - Wikipedia

         Through the advancement of technology, health practitioners or health institutions are now capable of storing and sharing a patient's information in a fast pace through the use of interconnected computers. This provides them comprehensive data that includes demographics, medical history, medication and allergies, immunization status, lab results, billing information, and more data of the patient confined or not in the hospital. 

            Through the EHR, there will be an improved quality of care since it will help lessen medical errors that would greatly affect a patient's well-being. Health care providers will also be able to access the patient's data clearly and completely. With the manual recording, health care providers would still have to wait for their colleagues to finish reading through the data which takes a lot of time. Through the EHR, health care providers are able to save their and will be able to attend to the other patients without rush. 

            It is somehow helpful for the environment too since paper won't get involved much by then. But the use of EHR has also some disadvantages. This includes the costs since there should be extra training required for the health practitioners on how they are going to use the system and the purchasing of a bunch of computers would be expensive. For the continuity and the efficiency of the system, it will require a maintenance cost monthly which would in the later run become expensive since there are a lot of computers used in one institution.

              Another concern is the privacy of the information. The privacy and integrity of the data will be preserved through the strict rules and regulations of the institution. Over all, implementing the use of electronic health record would be beneficial in the health care setting.