Benefits of Creating and Utilizing Medical Records

There are both benefits and disadvantages in using electronic medical records. Positive aspects of applying an electronic medical system record outweigh the negative ones. This paper explores the positive aspects of employing medical record system. To start with, employing medical electronic system is costly. However, over time, this cost will result in significant economies for both insurance company and clinical officers. In addition, in the context of cost saving, one benefit of medical records is that they preserve the space. Instead of maintaining an immense bunch of papers about patients, all documents are saved in a computer system. Though someone must pile up these documents in the computer, this still means by far less space than it is needed to store the physical documents.

Along with above-mentioned factor, there is the reduction in the amount of papers required by medical offices, insurance companies and hospitals. Electronics medical records do not render paper obsolete but they significantly reduce a number of required papers.

Another benefit of utilizing electronic medical records is the capability of coordinating care by all health care members. This assists to avoid a duplication of prescribing medicines that might be hazardous if the process is not controlled properly. In addition, it helps to avoid a replication of testing and gives medical officers the potential to comprehend the approaches taken to a condition of a patient. For instance, an individual with health complication issues may be attended by several specialists and can be confused by contrary or overlapping pieces of advice. When specialists and primary assistance doctors employ the same system for medical electronic records, then every member of the team should be informed of the other team members’ recommendations and actions (Willemssen, 2000).

Electronic medical records save time as well. Employing of an email and faxing helps the doctors to access information from a laboratory and other doctors for a short period. When a doctor has an instance access to all medical charts’ details, including information like lab and x-ray tests, he saves much time. This is helpful in the emergency cases where a patient cannot give an information of medical history because of an extreme injury.

Doctors are often considered to have illegible handwriting, which leads to misunderstandings. Typed information is less probable to generate a misinterpretation among the members of the medical team. The use of electronic medical records enhances easier access to information concerning patients. For patients, in turn, an access to better care becomes easier and safer when information can easily be shared. Vital information such as the prescription of drugs, blood type, medical status and other information of medical history can be accounted quickly. Quick access to information saves time and can be seen as life-saving.

The federal government considers record keeping substantial, and it has put efforts and capital where is recommended. Veterans’ medical care throughout the country employs an electronic system termed as Vista. This information system allows sharing of records concerning veterans in the health care. When a patient finds himself in a veteran hospital, even far away from home, the hospital assistance will have the same access to information his hometown hospital does (Torrey, 2012).

Safety is another vital benefit of employing electronic medical record. In the recent past, doctors obtained the information from patients by asking questions. Each time a patient visited a new doctor’s office, he was required to fill in a form concerning medical history information. If a patient omitted some detail that seems unimportant to him or forgot it, then the doctor did not have sufficient information to treat the patient. However, when doctors employ electronic medical records they only need to ask a patient their date of birth and name, and, thus, all other information can be accessed through the computer. All information needed for the treatment purposes will be there in full details.

In the past, when medical officers retired and closed his practice, deceased or displaced patients’ records were relocated easily, thus, making it difficult for the patient who required medical information to present it to a new doctor. Storing this information electronically means that the patient will not be left without records they may need.
In conclusion, the use of electronic medical record systems leads medical health care to the accomplishment of their objectives. These systems minimize the expenses of money, required papers, space, and the cost of labor as well. In extreme cases, electronic medical records can turn out to be life-saving.