Introduction
Improving healthcare quality is now the top priority for healthcare professionals. Technology integration, improved communication, and collaboration between healthcare teams, insurance companies, and patients. These aspects are critical for improving and developing the health care system and crucial for achieving a better quality of care. Various technological innovations make it possible, first of all, to provide better information collection and control. Communication and collaboration within and between teams help in better and more informed decision-making. Communication with patients and collaboration with insurance companies also makes the care process more transparent and patient-centered. Taken together, these factors significantly improve the quality of care and enable healthcare professionals to focus on their patients.
Technology Impact on Quality Care
Technology in the modern world plays an important supporting role in improving the quality of care and safety. Within healthcare, there are currently many innovations that have a positive impact on patient outcomes. For example, the introduction of technologies such as electronic medical recording “reduces medical errors and improves patient’s safety” (Alotaibi & Federico, 2017, p. 1177). The electronic prescription system helps professionals better control drug dosage and administration. Clinical decision support offers healthcare professionals more patient-specific information to help them make more accurate clinical decisions. Telemedicine also plays an important role in modern times, which provides access to care for patients from remote areas. It is also important to note that technology in healthcare has a positive effect on the cost of care, making it more efficient. Innovation is also being used to train staff more effectively and expand knowledge and skills. Overall, healthcare technology enables better decision making more precise control and saves the time and effort of professionals, resulting in a better quality of care.
Communication, Collaboration, and Shared Decision-Making
Providing medical care and achieving the best patient outcomes is built on the collaboration and communication of both patients and healthcare professionals. Roodbeen et al. (2020) note that shared decision-making, as well as communication, plays a vital role in providing quality and patient-centered care. Communication, in this case, is the cornerstone of all activities of medical personnel. First of all, communication with patients provides an opportunity to diagnose and treat diseases, as well as educate the population about health-related topics. Communication with colleagues and representatives of the medical profession ensures the functioning of medical institutions and the development of skills and the healthcare system in general. Collaboration and shared decision-making ensure the involvement of a larger number of specialists, as well as the possibility of a more detailed consideration of specific cases within the framework of providing care. These aspects result in a better quality of care as well as more patient-centered care.
Collaboration and communication within healthcare teams are also the foundation for the efficient operation of healthcare facilities. Rosen et al. (2018) underline that interaction and good relationships between healthcare teams ensure positive workforce outcomes. In particular, a collaboration between teams allows not only to improve the decision-making process and exchange of experience but also to establish a healthy working climate. Taken together, these factors lead to improved quality of care, increased patient-centered care, and better patient outcomes. It is also important that communication and collaboration within and between teams can increase the level of job satisfaction, as well as reduce the risk of negative stress situations. All this provides healthcare with better services due to the cumulative influence of factors of the workforce and better decision-making process.
Communication with patients and insurance companies is less evident but equally important to providing quality care. In particular, effective communication with patients allows professionals not only to collect more accurate information and make better decisions but also to work to promote health in society. Building trust with patients is a paramount concern for healthcare professionals. This aspect positively influences the provision of accurate information and the achievement of the best patient outcomes. Collaborations with insurance companies also result in a more transparent patient care process. The involvement of healthcare professionals in laws, regulations, and policies facilitates legal interactions for patients. All these combined also provide a better quality of care as well as more patient-centered care.
Conclusion
Achieving the best quality of care is a major challenge in today’s healthcare system. Patient-centered care is possible only when the various aspects of the interaction of influencing factors are integrated. Technology, in this case, acts as a tool to facilitate the implementation of changes and the whole process of providing care. Communication and collaboration both within healthcare teams and with patients are integral to achieving the best decision-making. Engaging with insurance companies is also important to create a more transparent patient care experience. Collectively, these factors contribute to creating quality care within the healthcare system. The main component of positive changes, in this case, is precisely patient-centered care that addresses the needs of each individual patient. In the contemporary world, the described factors must be universally integrated into healthcare professionals in order to achieve better patient outcomes through more informed work and new treatment tools.
References
Alotaibi, Y. K., & Federico, F. (2017). The impact of health information technology on patient safety. Saudi Medical Journal, 38(12), 1173-1180. Web.
Roodbeen, R., Vreke, A., Boland, G., Rademakers, J., Muijsenbergh, M., Noordman, J., & Dulmen, S. (2020). Communication and shared decision-making with patients with limited health literacy; helpful strategies, barriers and suggestions for improvement reported by hospital-based palliative care providers. PLoS ONE, 15(6), 1-20. Web.
Rosen, M. A., DiazGranados, D., Dietz, A. S., Benishek, L. E., Thompson, D., Provornost, P. J., & Weaver, S. J. (2018). Teamwork in healthcare: Key discoveries enabling safer, high-quality care. American Psychologist, 73(4), 433-450. Web.