WEEK 2

Health Informatics

According to WHO, it is the APPLICATION OF THE METHODOLOGIES AND TECHNIQUES OF INFORMATION SCIENCE, COMPUTING, NETWORKING, AND COMMUNICATIONS TO:

• SUPPORT HEALTH AND HEALTH RELATED DISCIPLINES SUCH AS: Medicine, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, etc.

• It is also the PRACTICE OF ACQUIRING, STUDYING AND MANAGING HEALTH DATA, AND APPLYING MEDICAL CONCEPTS (healthcare) in conjunction with information technology systems (computer science) to help clinicians provide better care. (Information Science)

1. Uses INFORMATION TO IMPROVE HEALTH CARE.

2. As an INTERDISCIPLINARY FIELD, it applies technology & information to enhance healthcare delivery and biomedical research.

Overlaps of Health Informatics

It is a MIXTURE OF 3 DISCIPLINES

1. Computer Science - Study of computers: developing software/hardware

2. Informatics Science - Manage and disseminate information and data

3. Health Care - Provision of medical and health services to improve a person’s health.

Information Technology

It comprises both HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE.

Hardware

Under the IT

• ex. Computer, router, power supply, units, etc.

Software

UNDER THE IT

• ex. programs, applications, or operating systems.

Significance of Health Informatics

According to JAVAID ET AL. (2024), the healthcare industry relies heavily on INFORMATION THAT IS ACCURATE, RELEVANT, AND OBTAINED FROM REPUTABLE SOURCES. In this context, health informatics has made several important contributions.

Streamlined Clinical Data Management

SIGNIFICANCE OF HEALTH INFORMATICS

It STORES PATIENT RECORDS IN A SINGLE ELECTRONIC SYSTEM, allowing the healthcare professionals to ACCESS AND UPDATE THE INFORMATION INSTANTLY.

• How the RECORDS OF PATIENTS WERE STORED and CAN BE RETRIEVED FROM THE SYSTEM.

Improved Efficiency and Error Reduction

SIGNIFICANCE OF HEALTH INFORMATICS

It SPEEDS UP INFORMATION SHARING across teams, REDUCING MANUAL DELAYS and administrative burden.

• IT MINIMIZES ERRORS BY ALLOWING PRECISE, UP TO DATE DATA at the point of care.

Empowered Clinical Decision Making

SIGNIFICANCE OF HEALTH INFORMATICS

It gives healthcare providers QUICK ACCESS TO SPECIFIC INFORMATION SUITED TO CERTAIN TREATMENTS, PROCEDURES, OR TRAINING HELPING THEM MAKE EVIDENCE BASED DECISIONS.

• Can also enable
  1. MICRO LEVEL: INDIVIDUAL PATIENT through using single patient’s laboratory results to decide best treatment plan
  2. MACRO LEVEL: ORG/ POPULATION HEALTH through analyzing thousands of patients in 1 hospital by getting their data to spot certain disease trends and plan what to vaccination campaign can be offered in hospital.

Improved Communication and Collaboration

SIGNIFICANCE OF HEALTH INFORMATICS

Connects healthcare professionals, patients and administrations THROUGH SHARED SYSTEMS, FACILITATING SEAMLESS INTERACTION AND COORDINATED CARE.

Integration of Advanced Technologies

SIGNIFICANCE OF HEALTH INFORMATICS

1. INTRODUCES CUTTING EDGE TOOLS; AI, IoMT, Telemedicine, Cloud Computing, VR/AR, Wearables, nanomedicine, Robotics to ELEVATED CARE DELIVERY & OUTCOMES.

2. APPLY INTELLIGENT ANALYSIS AND PREDICTIVE ALGORITHMS embedded in ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS for real time guidance and forecasting (Big viruses patterns)

Cultural Shift Toward Data Driven Practice

SIGNIFICANCE OF HEALTH INFORMATICS

ENCOURAGES ADOPTION OF BEST PRACTICES and continuous improvement fueled by ANALYTICS AND COLLABORATIVE TECHNOLOGIES.

WHO Building Blocks of the Health Systems

1. Service Delivery

2. Health Workforce

3. Health Information Systems

4. Access to Essential Medicines

5. Financing

6. Leadership / Governance

Overall goals and outcomes of WHO Building Blocks

Through access coverage and quality safety;

1. Improved health (level and equity)

2. Responsiveness

3. Social and Financial Risk Protection

4. Improved Efficiency

Service Delivery

WHO 6 BUILDING BLOCKS OF HEALTH SYSTEMS

“Good ____ are those which DELIVERY EFFECTIVE, SAFE, QUALITY PERSONAL AND NON PERSONAL HEALTH INTERVENTIONS to those that NEED THEM, WHEN AND WHERE NEEDED, WITH MINIMUM WASTE OF RESOURCES.”

Health Workforce

WHO 6 BUILDING BLOCKS OF HEALTH SYSTEMS

“Well performing ____ is one that WORKS IN RESPONSIVE WAYS, FAIR AND EFFICIENT TO ACHIEVE THE BEST HEALTH OUTCOMES POSSIBLE, given available resources and circumstances.”

• The people who are working in HEALTH SERVICES.

Health Information Systems

WHO 6 BUILDING BLOCKS OF HEALTH SYSTEMS

“Well functioning health information system is one that ENSURES THE PRODUCTION, ANALYSIS, DISSEMINATION, AND USE OF RELIABLE AND TIMELY INFORMATION on health determinants, health system performance and health status.”

• Systems for COLLECTING, ANALYZING, USING HEALTH DATA FOR DECISION MAKING

Access to Essential Medicines

WHO 6 BUILDING BLOCKS OF HEALTH SYSTEMS

“Well functioning health system ENSURES EQUITABLE ACCESS TO ESSENTIAL MEDICAL PRODUCTS, VACCINES AND TECHNOLOGIES of assured quality, safety, efficacy and cost effectiveness, with scientifically sound and cost effective use.”

• Ensuring access to safe, effective medicines and medical technology through supply change and cost and efficiency.

Financing

WHO 6 BUILDING BLOCKS OF HEALTH SYSTEMS

“Good health financing system RAISES ADEQUATE FUNDS FOR HEALTH, in ways that ensure people can use needed services and ARE PROTECTED FROM FINANCIAL CATASTROPHE or impoverishment associated with having to pay for them.”

• Raising and allocating funds so that people can access healthcare without hardship.

Leadership and Governance

WHO 6 BUILDING BLOCKS OF HEALTH SYSTEMS

It involve ENSURING THE EXISTENCE OF POLICY FRAMEWORKS combined with effective oversight, coalition building, regulation, attention to system design and accountability.

• It can support the leaders by providing them the effective tools for overseeing the healthcare process through real time data and support transparency and accountability.