Zipnosis Contract: A Case Study

The purpose of this paper is to discuss how technology has impacted the health care delivery system. Health care technology is advancing at an increasingly rapid rate in the United States, and globally. Patients and providers are witnessing these changes through the use of telehealth, and telemedicine applications. Telehealth, and telemedicine are often used interchangeably, however there is a difference between the two applications. Telehealth is the use of technology to deliver health care, health information, or health education at a distance (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, n.d.).

Restrictions on originating sites, geographic limitations, constraints on store-and-forward technologies and issues with Medicare reimbursements are just a few of the challenges. In the 114th Congress, Zipnosis was one of 98 organizations to publicly endorse the CONNECT for Health Act (H.R. 4442). With bipartisan support, CONNECT would have facilitated the full integration of telemedicine by removing geographical limitations, providing a federal definition of telemedicine, creating a level playing field for virtual care technologies and expanding Medicare’s telehealth and remote patient monitoring services.

The framework for telehealth builds on the successful outcomes including patient satisfaction and reductions in hospital readmissions. Veterans Health Administration’s telehealth services reported patient satisfaction levels greater than 85%, and reductions in bed days of care exceeded 40% among patients receiving the care technology. The Framework provides a vision, direction, and systematic approach for utilizing telehealth both statewide and locally. The framework will also be a tool to educate decision-makers on the impact of chronic disease, the importance of prevention, and the potential economic return of investment in a proven, community-based

The solution to the problem of decreased health care access is to increase the usage of telehealth/telemedicine. The U.S. of Veterans Affairs (n.d.) defines telehealth/telemedicine as “the utilization of health informatics along with disease specific management via technologies to provide care, increase access, enhance case management, and improve continuity of care to better the overall health of the Veteran population”. In most instances telehealth/telemedicine provides an alternative location for delivery of healthcare services, thereby making it more convenient. Telehealth/telemedicine is a very robust service nationally within the Veterans Administration (VA) Healthcare

The delivery of health care has always been influenced by technological developments and innovations. This is particularly true in modern health care professionals where they are obsessed with technology and rush to apply them. One of the most recent applications of ICT – Information and computer technology- is telehealth. Telehealth is the use of communication, diagnostic and information technology to provide health care when patients and providers are geographically separated [2], Technologies include videoconferencing, the internet, store -and-forward imaging, streaming media, terrestrial and wireless communications. Telehealth could be as simple as two health professionals discussing a case over the telephone or as

The purpose of telemedicine is to remove distance as a barrier to health care. While telehealth is an accepted resource to bridge the gap between local and global health care, integrating telehealth into existing health infrastructures presents a challenge for both governments and policy makers (HRSA, 2011). Today there are policy barriers that prevent the expansion of telehealth, including reimbursement issues raised by Medicare and private payers, state licensure, and liability and privacy concerns.

Telehealth is one of the major types of Health Care Information Systems (HCIS) that enables providers to connect with patients and consulting practitioners across remote areas to support patient and clinician education, diagnosis and treatment, chronic disease management and monitoring, and provider-to-provider interactions (Grube, Kaufman, Clarin, & O’Riordan, 2016, p.43). Telehealth is not a new idea. It initially started in 1950’s and 1960’s when the Nebraska Psychiatric Institute started the closed-circuit TV to monitor patients in rural areas where health care is not easily accessible (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2015). The development of internet and broadband and

Politically, issues about professional licensure and the ability to work across state lines are often discussed (Kopanos, 2014). The issue with telehealth is

Tomika, a co-worker is excited about her new job working for an agency that installs tele-monitoring equipment into the homes of people with chronic illnesses. She will monitor the patients using the equipment with the goal of detecting problems before these patients are readmitted to the hospital. A job in telenursing enables the nurse to work from home assessing and interacting with her patients through videoconferencing. According to a scholarly journal of the American Nurses of Association, there has been an escalation in deployment of remote technology to enhance health care, and an increasing acceptance of these technologies. There are also legal and regulatory questions pertaining to the provision of healthcare using these technologies

In today’s time, the Internet is really altering the way us Americans intermingle with the healthcare system. The Internet is making consumers more desirable to use it, in hopes for more opportunities. With the help from the Internet, telemedicine is becoming one of the best cultivating advanced technology in healthcare right now. Telemedicine can be defined as the use of medical information that is exchanged from one site to another (americantelemed, 2012). This process utilizes technology and digital communication in order to help patients’ progress. Important aspects of telecommunication include video, email, mobile devices, and more. So, in a nutshell telemedicine allows patients to communicate with their assigned physician about any

In the United States, a renewed interest occurred in telehealth in the 1990s according to McGonigle and Mastrian because of escalating costs, the need for greater access for all

There are weaknesses in the proposed plans to improve access. In the case of telehealth nothing can replace the hands on analysis of a trained physician. Any type of trauma care will still require an airlift to a trauma center for care. Complications such as reactions to medications, or complications of child delivery, would leave the patient in the hands of under trained staff. Such a program would require an infrastructure of physicians willing to teleconference. Second it would require an internet or satellite link that could not be disrupted.

Many of these barriers exist from lack of essentially knowing the benefits of what the incorporation of telehealth can offer within the aspect of this type of community. At times, there has been a great interest in telehealth surrounding its potential to reduce health care costs along with the improvement of patient outcomes, but at times there has been no known scientific evidence base underpinning it (McLean, Sheikh, Cresswell, Nurmmatov, Mukherjee, Hemmi & Pagilari, 2013).

There is an increasing need within the U.S. for quality health care to be provided to individuals who have limited access whether it is due to a rural environment, disabilities, or in the field of battle. Telemedicine is literally medicine provided at a distance. Telehealth is able to alleviate some of the effects of a growing shortage of professionals such as primary care physicians. In this type of health care delivery, the dynamics between the patient and the entire health care system changes. Telemedicine meets the increasing demands of patients to have greater access, or responsiveness, from a health care provider. It also meets the needs of the provider who is very interested in time-saving, safety-enhancing assistance in their daily practice. Employers and health plans are also very interested in telemedicine as a means of improving compliance with treatment plans and care management initiatives (Hodgkins, 2008). The use of email also allows the patient to have increased access to their health care providers. Instead of calling their health care provider’s office, patients are now able to email their non-emergent health care questions to their provider. Conversely, health care providers are able to email patients reminders for appointments or wellness tips.

There are several forms of technology that is used to monitor, assist patients with self-care management, assist physicians with delivering care to their patients, including consultation with specialist, and overcoming barriers with transportation. “60% of the healthcare executives, physicians, and nurses in this inaugural survey said that telemedicine was a high priority for 2015“ (Vockley, 2015, para. 7) Telemedicine