According to our lecture, the possibilities of HIT in relation to healthcare are limitless. Discuss what this may mean for the future of healthcare delivery. In your discussion, be sure to address the hesitation of older populations to accept technology. Would you personally be comfortable receiving surgery or receiving medications without human interaction? In replying to your peers, comment on their comfort level with such technology.
Health Information Technology (HIT) involves the application of ICT in healthcare. It includes various technologies used for collecting, transmitting, displaying, and storing patient data electronically. HIT also serves as an essential means of enabling health care providers to provide high-quality care in a timely, safe, effective, efficient, patient-centered, and equitable manner. According to Hemmat et al. (2017), HIT is a concept describing the application of computerized systems to help healthcare providers, patients, government agencies, and insurance companies access information. It includes various technologies, products, and services, such as cloud-based services, telemonitoring tools, assistant and sensor technologies, electronic health records (EHRs), medical devices, and remote and mobile health technology. These technologies assist users in collecting, sharing, and utilizing health information for varying purposes.
The benefits of HIT include its ability to disseminate patient information rapidly through legible formats, store and retrieve data, and improve medication safety through enhanced legibility, which potentially reduces the risk of medication errors. It also eases the process of retrieving patient information. Despite these advantages, some older populations are hesitant to adopt these technologies. This reluctance results from a lack of confidence in or familiarity with the technologies above. A study by Pew Research indicates that over 75% of Americans aged 65 years and above require help to use their smartphones, computers, or tablets (Bailey, n.d.). This situation can be justified by their fear of breaking a device, doing Something wrong, or not understanding the use or operations of these devices. However, a survey illustrates that over 90% of this population would use this technology if physicians recommended it (Bailey, n.d.). Noteworthy, I would find it partially uncomfortable receiving the medication without human interaction or recommendation from my physician.