Health IT of 2012 Promises Exciting Opportunities in 2013

A new year is a time when many people are thinking about their careers and the goals they hope to meet . . . a promotion, a better office, perhaps even using those vacation days this year. Maybe January means reevaluating your professional path altogether. If you have been considering a change of course and you have been hearing great things about opportunities in the Health IT industry . . . believe them! It is an exciting field that is in need of leaders and thinkers and creative minds to meet needs in ways you may never have considered.

One way to get excited about what information technology will mean to health care in 2013 is to examine the impact that it had in 2012. CIO John D. Halamka, MD took to his great blog recently to share his thoughts on five major developments in Health IT over the past year.

He mentions the partnership of experts in determining the best standards for displaying and exchanging information with patients and fellow clinicians across medical specialties and between offices. Instead of arguing over whose layout or programming was the most impressive, IT professionals worked with the medical community to create some uniform regulations and designs.

For those who are interested in law and issues of security, there was a lot of focus in 2012 to alleviate concerns that private medical information exchanged over an online format would remain just that . . . private. It’s bad enough when the pharmacy calls out your name over the drug store intercom to let everyone know your prescription is ready. You don’t need strangers with ill intentions gaining knowledge of your ailments or family history or account information.

Or, what about the exchange of a clipboard for a laptop a couple of years ago and now seeing that laptop replaced with a tablet. Has anyone else noticed that during a recent visit to their doctor? Is it possible that gone are the days of having to decipher a doctor’s handwriting on a prescription pad? That’s a plus, right?

All of these areas and so many more will continue to evolve and grow as the use of electronic health records, social media, and other features of the digital age become a more seamless part of the medical experience. Maybe 2013 will be your year to play a role!

About the author

Joe Lavelle

Joe Lavelle is the Co-Founder of intrepidNow. Prior to that Joe was an accomplished healthcare IT executive and career coach with a record of successfully meeting the business and technology challenges of diverse organizations including health plans, health delivery networks, health care companies, and several Fortune 500 companies.

Joe is also the author of Act As If It Were Impossible To Fail, available on Amazon.

   

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