INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND

COMMUNITY HEALTH

CHAPTER 15- EHEALTH IN THE COMMUNITY

SETTING
ICT- Information and communications technologies-diverse set
of technological tools and resources used to communicate ,
create , disseminate , store and manage information.
 eHealth is the use of ICT for health.
 ICT in eHealth are considered in the following;
 1. communicating with patient through teleconference, electronic ,email
 2. recording, retrieving and mining data in electronic medical record
 3. providing patient teachings with the aid of electronic like radio,television,
computers , smartphones and tablets
Power of data and information

 Paper based methods may bring inconveniences and a number of bigger problems
may occur.
 1. continuity and interoperability of care stops-record gets misplaced
 2. Illegible handwriting poses misinterpretation
 3. patient’s privacy is compromised
 4. data are difficult to aggregate- delay implementation of interventions and health
programs
 5. actual time for patient care gets limited
BENEFITS FOR HAVING A WELL MANAGED
PATIENT INFORMATION SYSTEM

 1. Data are readily mapped, enabling more targeted interventions and feedback.
 2. Data can easily retrieved and recovered.
 3. Redundancy of data is minimized.
 4. Data for clinical research becomes more available.
 5.Resources are used efficiently.
Qualities of Good Data

 1. Accuracy- ensures documentation reflects the event as it happened.

 2. Accessibility- availability of the data are readily available by family members,
health care staff , reports for statistics .
 3. Comprehensiveness- data imputed should be complete.
 .4 . Consistency / Reliability – having no discrepancies in data recorded makes it
consistent.
 5. Currency- data must be up –to – date.
 6. Definition – data should be properly labeled and clearly defined.
Factors affecting eHealth in the Philippines.

 1. Limited health budget.

 2. The emergence of free and open source software.
 3. Decentralized government.- under RA 7160 or Local Government Code of
1991 LGU are autonomous
 4. Target users are unfamiliar with the technology.
 BENEFITS OF eHealth and telemedicine to communities when technology are
present.
 1. enhancement to existing human relationship that have been established through
conventional routes
 2. solution to a long felt community need
ROLES OF COMMUNITY HEALTH NURSES IN
eHealth

 1. Data and records manager-monitor the trends of diseases, targeted interventions

for health promotions, disease prevention, curative services or rehabilitation
 2. Change agent – working closely with health leaders, policy makers
stakeholders and other community health professionals.
 3.Educator- provide health education through ICT
 4. Telepresenter- present the case of patient when referred to other health
professional or facility.
 5. Client advocate- must safeguard client’s records.
 6. Researcher- patients records can easily be retrieved and analyzed for research.