Health care.(2007 Alaska Forecast)

Few industries are impacted as profoundly by communications and technology than that of health care. In 2007, Alaskans will continue seeing an increase in the use and implementation of Electronic Medical Records (EMR). Heavily promoted in the late 1990s, EMRs hold the promise of better patient care, reduced medical errors and a decrease in cost. Like most technological advances, this behemoth is expensive and takes time to learn. Currently, the National Center for Health Statistics estimates that nearly 24 percent of physicians are currently using EMRs. However, as security issues are resolved and physicians become increasingly more comfortable with the electronic environment, EMR implementation will continue to make advances.

Another communications and technology advancement Alaskans can expect to see in 2007 is the increased use of the Personal Desktop Assistant (PDA) in the exam room. Much more affordable and easier to learn than EMRs, PDAs still offer some advantages. For example, a physician can have entire textbooks stored on the PDA, which allows the provider to access huge amounts of data to ensure the best and most up-to-date care is provided. In addition, prescriptions can be sent directly from the PDA to a pharmacy, ensuring patient privacy, while at the same time providing a timesaving element for both patient and physician.

Finally, it is predicted that more and more patients will soon be carrying their own medical records into their doctor's offices. This won't be accomplished by lugging in armfuls of paper, though. Rather, this will be achieved with digital media. Already, offices all over Alaska are computerizing their records, from medical notes to lab results and from ultrasounds to X-rays. As this time-consuming process becomes complete, patients may be able to ask for their entire medical records to be available on a disk.

Michael Reeves, M.D., Medical Park Family Care

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