Healthcare delivery evolves to adapt to social, patient care, and environmental changes. Nursing informatics dominates this evolution and provides an opportunity for healthcare providers to integrate nursing, information, and computer sciences into patient care (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2022). Due to the risks that information technologies pose and other challenges, regulations and policies are crucial to managing tech-driven health practices. The purpose of this fact sheet is to analyze a nursing informatics regulation.
| Regulation Overview | The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) encourage technology adoption and manage its use through regulations. One such regulation is Promoting Interoperability Programs for hospitals. As a 2018’s update of Medicare and Medicaid EHR incentive programs, the regulation’s primary mandate is to promote meaningful use of electronic health records by promoting interoperability (HealthIT.gov, 2019). Through interoperable systems, hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) can provide high-quality and high-value care. |
| Impact on System Implementation | Healthcare organizations implement different systems to support efficiency and transform how care is offered. The interoperability requirement under Promoting Interoperability Programs obliges healthcare organizations to connect systems and devices in a way that supports effortless communication and care coordination. The guiding principle of interoperability is easy information sharing between healthcare professionals (Bates & Samal, 2018). |
| Impact on Clinical Care, Patient/Provider Interactions, and Workflow | Interoperability is a core component of meaningful use. Promoting meaningful use has numerous benefits, such as high provider engagement, patient access to health information, and quick care delivery (Tapuria et al., 2021). Meaningful use also minimizes workflow issues since the systems are secure and require minimal end user effort. Interoperable systems reduce the risks of medical errors hence better clinical care outcomes (Li et al., 2021). Patient-provider communication and collaboration are high when patients access their information in EHRs. |
| Policies and Procedures to address Promoting Interoperability Programs | All systems should be secure and free from access to unauthorized users. Systems’ designs, interfaces, and other essentials should facilitate seamless and effortless communication and data exchange between providers in the same or different departments. Regular training on security, privacy, and data exchange essentials should be conducted regularly to ensure healthcare providers can adhere to the basic principles of the meaningful use. |
Policies and regulations ensure that healthcare providers adhere to rules and guidelines concerning patient care. Promoting Interoperability Programs obliges healthcare systems to adopt systems that facilitate meaningful use. Adherence to this obligation improves patient-provider engagement, communication, and other outcomes.
Bates, D. W., & Samal, L. (2018). Interoperability: what is it, how can we make it work for clinicians, and how should we measure it in the future?. Health Services Research, 53(5), 3270-3277. https://doi.org/10.1111%2F1475-6773.12852
HealthIT.gov. (2019). Promoting interoperability. https://www.healthit.gov/topic/meaningful-use-and-macra/promoting-interoperability
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