Response posts to two peers (Minimum 250 words each) who answered a different prompt than yours.  The response posts should add new information, challenge ideas presented, or synthesize related ideas posted by the group. Each response post must be supported by the module readings AND one current (within the past five years), peer-reviewed journal article with a focus on the United States.

Post # 1

K-P: The Administrative Simplification Compliance Act of 2001 requires that all Medicare claims be submitted electronically. What are some of the vulnerabilities to the protection of electronic health information?

Dana Peterson

Electronic health information and electronic medical records were considerable advancements in medicine. Those advancements made it easier for information to be transferred and stored. Even if patients have records from a different hospital system, a simple release waiver can be signed and we could easily have everything from their previous hospital visits available to us, helping to connect the dots of their medical history. As nurses, we have a huge responsibility to be good stewards of sensitive patient information and ensure we are not putting our patients at risk of being taken advantage of. Daily I try to do what I can to protect sensitive information by not leaving papers around with patient information on them, logging out of my computer when I walk away and making sure I ask for the patient’s privacy code when speaking to anyone about the patient. This past year my hospital system got hacked into, and we had to function on downtime for over a month. I can tell you it was one of the most challenging things I have had to do at a job, especially considering I was working in the intensive care unit, taking care of multiple critical patients. We are now in the process of switching over electronic health records software companies to a program that is more secure. The Administrative Simplification Compliance Act (ASCA) was created to improve efficiency and reduce the cost of processing Medicare claims. Although it streamlines the process of Medicare claims, anything done electronically has risks associated with it, including susceptibility to data breaches. According to Feeg et al., patient portals and the use of mobile applications increase the risk of breaches (2020). Inappropriate disclosures could be disastrous. Mobile devices can easily be lost or stolen landing sensitive information into the wrong hands. In fact, non-paper based breaches of over 500 or more people reported by CMS are mostly due to mobile devices (Feeg et al., 2020). It seems like with every advancement we make as a society, there are still considerations that need to be addressed and the use of electronic health information is no exception.

Reference

Feeg, V.D., Withall, J., & Weiner, K. (2020). Health information technology and the intersection of health policy. In D. Nickitas, D. Middaugh, & V. Feeg (Eds.), Policy and politics for nurses and other health professionals advocacy and action (3rd ed., pp. 371-401). Jones & Bartlett Learning.

post # 2

A-J: Hospitals experience financial stress as it relates to accessing capital. Without adequate capital, hospitals cannot replace or modernize outdated facilities, respond to changing demands such as technology and equipment, but getting capital is sometimes difficult forcing some hospitals to close, or to be purchased by multi-hospital systems. Which of the organizational structures are most vulnerable to having problems accessing capital, and why?

Amanda Jones

Since hospitals were first introduced in the United States, they have gone through several transformations over the years with finances becoming a primary factor for success. Originally, the funds that paid for hospital care and staff were donated by wealthy leaders of society. Care was provided by mostly volunteers and was viewed more as a charitable organization. Over time, hospitals became more modernized and developed into a business, which increased spending and healthcare costs. As a result, many hospitals suffer financially and are forced to close or sell to larger hospital networks (Caress and Aries, 2020).

The hospitals most at risk to shut down or being sold are non-profit community hospitals, especially rural hospitals or urban hospitals that serve low-income populations. These hospitals that serve areas with a large amount of unemployed, underinsured, undocumented immigrants and Medicaid patients are not reimbursed properly for their services. Even though the government provides relief using tax funds, it is still not always enough capital to keep the organization running. While for-profit hospitals have the ability to sell stocks and bonds, non-profit hospitals rely on tax-exempt revenue bonds to meet their capital needs (Caress and Aries, 2020).

Unfortunately, several more challenges prevent non-profit hospitals from meeting monetary goals. As healthcare services and technology growth have increased, there is less need for extensive inpatient hospital stays. The average number of days for inpatient services has decreased. Services previously offered in the hospital setting, such as procedures and testing can now be done in outpatient centers. Hospital payments for services had changed from pay per day to payment based on diagnosis-related bundles. Due to all of these shifts, the hospitals have increased bed availability and lack funds to purchase advanced equipment or modernized technology (Caress and Aries, 2020).

Reference

Caress, B., & Aries, N. (2020). Hospitals: Consolidation and compression. In D.M. Nickitas, D.J. Middaugh, & V.D. Feeg (Eds.), Policy and politics for nurses and other health professionals: Advocacy in action (3rd ed., pp. 291-311). Jones & Bartlett Learning.