Healthcare Professionals and Technology

¶ … Practicum Project in Health Informatics Strengths • This practicum thesis allows the student to work on developing informatics-based applications while also applying informatics science and skills. • Uses technology to help streamline processes that ultimately aid in the patient experience • Lowers costs while increasing efficiency Weaknesses • Does not focus on the "human component" of technology • Focuses on the benefits of informatics but does not take into account the costs as it relates to onboarding.

People must be training on the technology; stakeholders must know how to fix problems that arise. All employees must be willing to adopt the technology. • Does not properly take into account the threat of cyber security and its implications on training nurses.

A hack may disrupt the overall application of the technology "Preceptor Training and Nurse Retention" Strengths • Strong emphasis on a team approach as it relates to training and retention • Use of preceptorship • Emphasis on training programs and rotational environments Weaknesses • Not much use of technology to train and onboard • Lack of evidence to show that a group or team approach is indeed the best solution "National Public Health: Laboratory Internship Model." Strengths • Provides a framework for the use of internships during the onboarding process • Introduces the concept of "Needs Assessment" and Strategic Planning as it relates to recruiting talent • Focuses on corporate culture and with emphasis on changing demographics Weaknesses • Primarily focuses on internships as a means to gain experience.

Does not focus on the individuals who already have experience in the healthcare field • Little mention of technology as it relates to onboarding. 2) What is your rationale for explaining your views on their strengths and weaknesses? My rationale is predicated on feasibility. As it relates to the thesis projects, I recognize there is no "One-size-fits-all" approach. However, when assessing strengths and weaknesses, I am mindful of three core concepts.

1) Does the thesis use technology to enhance the patient experience and reduce costs for the organization? 2) Does the thesis provide a reliable solution to onboarding healthcare professionals within the backdrop of changing demographics and service needs? 3) Does the thesis provide a means of improving the onboarding process as it relates to quality of care as oppose to simply treating the ailment? With these concepts in place, I was better able to assess the strengths and weakness of each thesis and dissertation.

3) If you were to do a thesis or dissertation, what would be your topic and why? If I were to do a dissertation, my topic would focus on technology and its application to the overall onboarding process. As it relates to healthcare, the entire industry is undergoing fundamental change. Regulations such as the Affordable Care Act are changing the overall dynamic within the industry. For example, emphasis is now placed on quality of care as oppose to simply conducting treatment.

In addition, much more of the American population is now insured, creating a much broader array of patients. These patients will have differing treatment needs and applications. Healthcare professionals will therefore need to onboarded in a manner that is consistent with these changing demographics and regulation. Technology is vital is this respect as it allows for effective onboarding in a cost efficient manner. One aspect of the Affordable Care Act, is its emphasis on cost reduction. Healthcare costs as a percentage of GDP, continues to rise at an alarming rate.

In fact, much of the government's unfunded liabilities relate specifically to healthcare costs. Technology therefore allows healthcare practitioners to be trained for the changing population, while also saving costs associated with the Affordable Care Act. My thesis would look to quantify this relationship. I would look to identify new methods of teaching that would coincide with the changing demographics of the insured population. Nurses for example will now work with more minority populations in their chosen field. They therefore must be aware of aspect that impact minority populations disproportionately.

Training new hires, to better acquiesce with changing demographics will be difficult considering, that some are not familiar with every nuance. In addition, new technology must be used to.