Patients and Medical Computing
There are some major changes in the flow of medical information that impact patients every day. As more hospitals and doctor's offices begin to use electronic medical records (EMRs), the flow of information among the different doctors and care facilities a patient uses could become much more reliable. In their training and work, doctors and nurses rely on computers. What about patients? Examine Google Health at health.google.com for an example of an electronic medical history. How does this migration from a traditional paper records system impact the skills required for medical office workers? New ethical questions also often arise when technology changes. How would a medical facility now protect and verify its data records? What risks are there with a product like Google Health?