The healthcare industry has experienced tremendous changes in business operations over the last few decades

Introduction

The healthcare industry has experienced tremendous changes in business operations over the last few decades. The changes have been accompanies by challenges in cost control and improving of the quality of delivering care. The integral part of the transformation is integration of information technology and processes in storage, acquisition, delivering and processing the clients’ information and data. Several organizations have realized the essence of managing an appropriate information technology strategy in a health care environment that is complex and dynamic. The medical practice has gradually moved to managed care, whereby there is a form of partnership between the payers, providers, regulators and the suppliers who have changed the way of delivering health care. The health care-related organization chosen for this assignment is a hospital. The use of information processes and databases in a hospital will be examined.

Discussion

Health care data can be grouped into four groups. The first category of data is known as patient-centric data, which is related to patients directly. The second group is aggregate data, which is grounded on utilization and performance and also known as resource management data. The third type of data is transformed-based date, which is concerned with planning as well as clinical and management decision support. Finally, there is comparative data for researching on health services and measurement of outcomes. The source of data is mostly the operational support system or the transaction processing system of an organization. These systems are information deficient but data-rich due to many years of accumulation of disparate data (Armoni, 2002).The practice of maintaining and caring for health records by the use of either electronic or traditional means is known as health information management. Health information technology and health informatics are increasingly used in information management processes in health care environments, with the widespread computerization of health care records as well as other sources of information. Information systems not only affect patients, but they also affect end users in addition to presenting strategies that can be used for managing health care data and information. When data concerning patients, services, cost and staff members in a health care environment become more of a burden than a benefit, it calls for appropriate management of health care information (Lee & Glaser, 2005).

Clinical databases have become increasingly widely used in the last few decades. It is fundamental to empower the staff and management with knowledge concerning data warehousing as well as tools for knowledge management to help in strategic decision making. Data analysis and data warehousing tools can be adopted by a health care-related organization to enhance decision-making process as well as data leveraging. For these tools to function, the user has to control the process of data investigation. Additionally, there should be a predefined beginning point such as a question, hypothesis program or procedure whose role is to dictate the nature of analyzing data.Data mining which is also referred to as information discovery and database exploration is extremely important in health care. The process of data mining has been known to bring information processing closer to giving organizations actual solutions that are being sought from organizational data. There is massive data in health care, and this data is not beneficial to the organization till it is transformed into knowledge and information. This in turn can aid in increasing profits, controlling costs and maintaining patient care that is of high quality. Through data mining, a health-care related organization is able to get a clear view of automated pattern recognition and uncover patterns that can be challenging to detect by the use of traditional data processing means. The full potential of data collected within an organization can be realized with data mining owing to the fact that analyzed data is highly dimensional, massive, uncertain and distributed. Hence, health care organizations must have the potential to store, capture and analyze data in order to succeed. It is therefore clear that data mining is among the most common ways of utilizing clinical databases (Lee, 2005).

Through data mining, users can discover concealed patterns without having a predetermined idea about the identity if the pattern. Users may discover interesting patterns that were not previously conceived when they wander through a database without a particular goal. For example a specific plan for a give diagnosis can be determined by the use of algorithms (Suh, 2011)Data warehouses enable users to tap into the knowledge that is concealed in the massive data in order to comprehend organizational trends and make strategic decisions that are timely. Through predictive modeling, users can identify patterns, which can then be utilized in predicting the odds associated with a given outcome on the basis of data observed. It is therefore clear that data mining techniques and technology are useful in management of health care. Data mining techniques can also be utilized by staff in the analysis of financial and clinical data to aid in strategic decision-making. The technology enables organizations to attain their goals and objectives for revenue generation and cost control while at the same time maintaining superior-quality patient care. Data mining tools can function as instruments for converting data to meaningful information.A paper-based documentation system was used for tracking and recording student clinical work within the Nursing Practice educational programs for almost two decades at the IndianaUniversity nursing School. Notebooks that were screened for rotational documentation, case logs, competencies and competencies were used to describe clinical requirements. Accordingly, there was monitoring of clinical experiences by the use of instructors and preceptors. The final documentation was evaluated at the end of the semester. The above as well as other practical considerations prompted the University to adopt an electronic clinical documentation system (Suh, 2011)

The faculty realized the essence of using technology as well as the educational metrics that could be gleaned from technology use, soon after adopting the database system. The database system also served administrative functions since they enable maintenance of clinical site and preceptor database. This is especially useful in obtaining accurate records concerning preceptors and their credentials. Data obtained facilitates the decision-making process.  It is evident that administration can make poor decisions because of wading through massive data. This may also delay the process of making decisions. Therefore, this example from the Indian University School of Nursing illustrates the importance and use of databases in a health-related environment.In my current work setting, clinical databases are utilized in clinical audit, evaluative research as well as in management of services. Additionally, the databases have proved helpful to practitioners as well as patients in making of informed decisions concerning their clinical management. A good example that can be used to support the effectiveness of the databases is the use of a database for breast cancer in my work setting. We conducted a research study on approximately two thousand women who were followed up for ten years. The role of the follow up was for individualized predication of a new patient’s survival by matching the profile of her disease to the profiles of previous breast cancer patients with known outcomes. For the entire follow up period, it is possible for the patient and her physician to obtain a survival curve and not an approximation for a singe point of time. Hence, such a system can be applicable to any given clinical database inclusive of accurate information concerning the patient characteristics affecting clinical outcome (Melnyk & Overholt, 2010).A development similar to that adopted by my organization can help in the promotion of care that is patient-centered as well as aid in making meaningful shared decision making a fact. Ongoing studies would enable databases to provide information that is more up-to-date and that is a true reflection of the available treatment outcomes. With the increasing availability of clinical databases, the potential scope for making use of high-quality databases is rapidly expanding.

With the incorporation of informatics and information system in health care, issues of concerning data security and integrity are inevitable. These issues can be effectively managed using database management system. It is first of all essential to have a general understanding of database management system. A layer of software that sits between the users and other computer software applications as well as the database itself is what is referred to as a database management system. This system functions in the addition, removal and updating of data within the database.Databases form a central part of health information systems and electronic medical records. Database management system on the other hand forms a central part of data warehousing. A data warehouse stores information obtained from different sources and waiting to be reported and analyzed. As soon as data is generated, it is aggregated and converted into meaningful information after solving all differences and inconsistencies. The information obtained can be delivered to users at any given time.Data warehousing is currently utilized in hospitals for the provision of financial and clinical information. There has also been an increasing use of data warehouse applications in knowledge management for providing staff with the right gateways for intellectual distribution of capital and more knowledge concerning the organization and the health care industry at large. It can also be sued to share results amongst staff regarding on going research and work. It is therefore clear that data warehousing is extremely useful in a hospital setting (Melnyk, 2010).

The hospital under study has incorporated a database system that maintains two levels of users. These levels are the user level and the administrator level. The software is utilized in providing prescriptions, precautions and diet advice, maintaining patient details, providing and maintaining all tests done on patients as well as billing and generating reports. The database management system enables a planned approach towards working whereby working in the hospital is organized and well planned. The system also increases the level of accuracy in processing, storage and management of data. It also enhances reliability and makes it easy to retrieve information.The form of architecture used is the oracle database architecture. An oracle database can be defined as an integration of data that is treated as a unit. This type of database is among the most flexible and cost effective means of managing information and applications. Oracle database comprises of both physical and logical structures which are separate. This enables data to be stored physically and managed without having an effect in accessing of structures for logical storage. Compared to other database designs, oracle databases are more cost effective and have a greater flexibility. Moreover, they deliver high quality health care service. The high quality service is owed to a centralized and policy-driven management as well as a strong security infrastructure (Armoni, 2002).

One of the recommended databases that the hospital needs to use is the hierarchical database, which can be used as a drug database and also for decision support. To improve the shortcomings or demerits of the hierarchical database, a network database can be used. This type of database can be used for storing multiple health care records and information. For processing more complex data and information, it is recommendable for the hospital to make use of object-oriented database. This type of database would be used to manage massive disparate information.Health care information is finding its way outside security systems in ways that threaten personal privacy, despite elaborate safeguards and plans. Health care information breaches like theft of computers containing patients’ financial and health care information are taking place frequently. An unauthorized acquisition of computerized data compromising confidentiality, integrity or security of personal information maintained by an organization is what is referred to as a security breach. Personal information may comprise of a person’s identity, state identification number or driver’s license number, credit card number, account number or a password that paves way for accessing personal account (Dube & Shoniregun, 2010).Security issues concerning databases can stem from attackers, hackers that are external to a network or working outside the firewall of a hospital. The vulnerability of databases to external attacks increases as they become networked in more complex electronic applications. A hospital’s privacy is at risk without additional precautions taken to secure confidential data contained in databases. Database management such as preventive security measures like access control, encryption and strong user identification technologies are used to for protecting databases from attacks.

The loss and theft of computers containing health-care related information is among the major security issues that the hospital under study faces. A database management solution that can be used to solve this issue is the use of storage encryption. Insures should busy and enable licenses for hard disks on safe end clients who are already deployed for removable storage encryption and port control. A data protection suite should be use to secure and protect confidential client information from external and internal threats (Dube, 2010).Information in workplace databases can not only be obtained by hackers but such information can also be stolen by people within an organization. The information obtained unlawfully can be used for destroying an organization or an individual’s reputation. With recent cases of identity theft, it is also possible for information obtained to be used for identity theft. It is therefore evident that information security breach is an important issue which organizations need to beware of. Therefore, for database management systems to effectively protect personal information and enhance data security, it is essential to have recovery and backup options. These options enable retrieval of meaningful information that may have been lost through security breach. Health care-related organizations such as hospitals should therefore invest in appropriate and effective backup and recovery systems (Wager & Lee, 2009).

Conclusion

From the above discussion, it is evident that management of information is essential in a health care-related environment such as a hospital. This is owed to the fact that there is massive data concerning patients’ health records, staff, suppliers and even practitioners’ records. Finding ways of managing the massive data and converting it to useful information is therefore imperative. The health industry has adopted and integrated information systems in data management over the last few decades. This is particularly through the use of data warehouses, data mining as well as databases. The use of technology has not only proven to be effective, but it is also cost effective and easy to use.With the introduction of databases, there have been increasing cases of breaches that poses threats to security of personal information. Several cases of laptop computer thefts have been increasing over the last few years. In order to maintain, data security and integrity, it is essential to health care-related organizations to implement effective database management systems. The appropriate and effective designs for database should be used and a good example is the oracle database design, which is not only cost effective but also efficient in promoting data security and integrity.

References

Armoni, A. (2002). Effective healthcare information systems. Idea Group Inc (IGI)

Dube, K., & Shoniregun, C. (2010). Electronic-Healthcare Information Security. Springer

Lee, F., & Glaser, J. (2005). Managing health care information systems. John Wiley & Sons

Melnyk, B., & Overholt, E. (2010). Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing & Healthcare. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Suh, S. (2011). Practical Applications of Data Mining. Jones & Bartlett Publishers

Wager, K., & Lee, F. (2009). Health Care Information Systems. John Wiley and Sons