Essay Example on Telehealth Revolution: Better Care Through Data Systems

Introduction

Telehealth technology has revolutionized the process of delivering care to patients in home health facilities. Its integration in the care processes has ensured that better means of offering care are developed. The technology is based on effective handling of data through developing data systems that promote organization, professionalism, and accountability among nurses, as primary care providers (Clark, 2015). One of the main telehealth technologies is the Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) system that has been playing a significant role in ensuring that data in healthcare facilities are effectively handled (Scharpf & Madigan, 2010). The validity and reliability of OASIS can only be assured through the roles it plays in ensuring that home health facilities provide quality care.

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Overview of OASIS

OASIS is a set of data management tools that were developed by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). It was developed to ensure that care provision for adult home care patients is effectively provided by improving processes of handling information. It is involved in care provision processes ranging from measuring patient outcomes to influencing reimbursement of resources that ensure the provision of quality treatment to adult patients. OASIS was introduced in the year 2000, and since then, it has ensured that care provision in the home healthcare sector is improved (Thomason, Hawkins, Perkins, Hamilton, & Nelson, 2015). OASIS is therefore, considered a key player in care quality improvement in the home health sector.

OASIS brings together key players of the healthcare industry to ensure that home health care is well maintained. The US government plays a crucial role in upholding the importance of OASIS by approving the technology and its application in home health. The government has been able to oversee the development of OASIS using healthcare regulation institutions. Medicaid is an important stakeholder in care provision, which makes it closely associated with the work of OASIS (Sheeran, Reilly, Weinberger, Bruce, & Pomerantz, 2010). OASIS has updated and informed Medicaid on how to manage home health care facilities effectively. Coordination is enhanced by bringing together all stakeholders in the healthcare sector. Telehealth technology ensures that quality care is offered in all healthcare facilities.

The Validity and Reliability of OASIS

The impact, application, and effectiveness that the OASIS system offers to the care process define its validity and reliability. Validity is the aspect of being essential and logically sound during implementation, while reliability is the extent to which a product is fully functional in meeting its intended purposes and objectives.

The fact that OASIS brings together all concerned parties in the process of care provision is the best way to verify its validity and reliability in the home healthcare setting. The technology interconnects every active care provider serving in a home health facility. The government and Medicaid ensure that home health facilities have all the resources necessary in care provision (Sheeran et al., 2010). Also, Medicaid is alerted on the details of every patient, thus promoting proper planning on how effective care will be provided on time. Nurses and healthcare professionals in other home health facilities are also connected to the OASIS database. Nurses can provide timely care to patients, while doctors can schedule patient visitations effectively. The collective environment brought by the OASIS system ensures that coordinated care is offered by improving communication. In return, the system facilitates quality care provision in any home health facility.

The OASIS technology has been able to develop an inclusive environment in care provision by ensuring that every home patient is offered quality care. Through the incorporation of Medicaid in the care provision processes, OSIS has been able to reach a goodly percentage of adult patients. The moment a home health institution records data of an adult patient into the OASIS system, Medicaid receives the data and initiates planning on how resources can be availed for the provision of care to that patient (Scharpf & Madigan, 2010). Also, the patient is assured proper care by receiving frequent updates from both the home healthcare facility and Medicaid. The assurance helps them reduce stress about their conditions, thus improving their psychological health. Resources availed by Medicaid through OASIS proves that it is effective in ensuring that inclusivity of all patients, while, at the same time, guaranteeing reliability and validity.

OASIS technology has also enhanced professionalism and accountability among home healthcare professionals. Nurses are the main care providers in home health institutions since they spend most of their time taking care of patients. The work may bring about boredom and monotony. OASIS technology simplifies activities for nurses, where they do not have to keep a constant eye on patients (Thomason et al., 2015). OASIS automates the process of care delivery by ensuring that nurses are always alert. Interaction between patients and nurses is also improved. The system simplifies communication for nurses to understand patients' condition rather than asking many questions that may intimidate or confuse the patient. As a result, nurses can promote professionalism in the workplace by improving nurses' relations with patients.

The applicability of OASIS in the home health institution also helps in illustrating its validity and reliability. The basic application of the system is ensuring that data is effectively processed and managed. The OASIS system ensures that data in a home health facility is collected systematically and stored in one database (Shang, Larson, Liu, & Stone, 2015). Patients are allowed to access their data and follow their health progress from the OASIS system. Also, nurses and other healthcare professionals can save time by providing care to elderly patients using the OASIS platform to analyze a patient's data. It is through the OASIS system that Medicaid and the government can access information on patients to perform tasks such as planning and regulation. Therefore, the effectiveness offered by OASIS in data and information management in home health facilities helps in ensuring its validity and reliability in care provision.

The OASIS system has been effectively used to perform clinical processes. The technology provides various elements of data. In any health care facility, data is the most valuable resource since it influences the treatment process and policies that affect care delivery. Similarly, effective clinical processes rely on data for effective treatment, prevention, and disease management initiatives. The OASIS system offers a platform for real-time data collection from patients (Sheeran et al., 2010). For instance, the system is integrated into patients' temperature, heartbeat, and pressure gadgets, which ensures that real-time data is relayed for a comprehensive assessment. As such, the clinical examination of data is done in time, offering timely solutions to problems that affect the care process. The system stores clinical data, which ensures that similar health occurrences that are solved quickly, or their solutions derived from available data. OASIS improves the quality of clinical processes, which improves the quality of care in home care facilities.

OASIS has developed an effective foundation for research affecting home health institutions. Healthcare provision, especially among the elderly, is a sensitive process that requires constant research and knowledge update. The emergence of new challenges hinders the provision of proper services to patients (Thomason et al., 2015). Data availed in the OASIS system ensures that all relevant information on healthcare challenges is provided. The research process is done in a well-resourced environment. The probability of providing viable solutions is consequently improved. Also, new findings from all research are publicly displayed in the OASIS system. Research is coordinated by the OASIS system, ensuring high utilization.

Compliance with healthcare regulations and standards is a concept that OASIS helps in achieving. The functionality of OASIS is a major breakthrough in solving healthcare laws. For instance, patient information confidentiality is a major law that is required in health centers. Due to the systematic handling of patient data, OASIS guarantees better handling of the data, thus assuring compliance with patient confidentiality laws (Thomason et al., 2015). In addition, documentation of patient information is a regulation that is required to facilitate quality care provision. Nursing standards that uphold an inclusive coordinated nursing process are upheld through the guidance of the OASIS system. The compliance brought about by Outcome and Assessment Information Set tool cannot be overlooked since it greatly helps in achieving quality care provision. For instance, the system offers full documentation that involves nursing care plans, physician prescriptions and directions, communication to family members, and all the taken clinical test. The fact that OASIS enhances compliance with laws and standards for quality healthcare proves that the system is valid and reliable in a home health facility.

Conclusion

The validity and reliability of OASIS is an aspect that is influenced by several factors. Stakeholders, the utilization of the system, and the efficiency of the system to perform its tasks prove its validity and reliability. More specifically, data management and processing are seen to be the most valuable asset of the OASIS system because they help in sustaining its effectiveness in health institutions. Therefore, OASIS, as a telehealth technology, proves to be a highly useful technology care provision, thus prompting every facility to implement and embrace its role in providing quality care.

References

Clark, M. (2015). Population and community health nursing. (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Scharpf, T., & Madigan, E. (2010). Functional Status Outcome Measures in Home Health Care Patients with Heart Failure. Home Health Care Services Quarterly, 29(4), 155-170. doi: 10.1080/01621424.2010.534044

Shang, J., Larson, E., Liu, J., & Stone, P. (2015). Infection in home health care: Results from national Outcome and Assessment Information Set data. American Journal Of Infection Control, 43(5), 454-459. doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2014.12.017

Sheeran, T., Reilly, C., Weinberger, M., Bruce, M., & Pomerantz, J. (2010). THE PHQ-2 on OASIS-C. Home Healthcare Nurse: The Journal For The Home Care And Hospice Professional, 28(2), 92-102. doi: 10.1097/nhh.0b013e3181cb560f

Thomason, T. R., Hawkins, S. Y., Perkins, K. E., Hamilton, E., & Nelson, B. (2015). Home telehealth and hospital readmissions: a retrospective OASIS-C data analysis. Home healthcare now, 33(1), 20-26. doi: 10.1097/NHH.0000000000000167