Serving rural populations has always been challenging for the health care industry. Patients that require care often need to travel long distances for basic services, let alone specialized care. This of course interferes with effective coordination of care. Care providers like
Sanford Health in the Dakotas have been successful in using technology to improve their quality of care. By leveraging various technologies, Sanford Health has been able to provide high-value care to populations widely dispersed across its 300,000-square mile service area.
Benefits of an Integrated EMR Platform Integrated electronic medical record (EMR) platforms show promise for better communication between health providers that are widely spread out. EMR systems make it easier to track changes and implement notifications to health care providers to immediately follow up with the patient. For example, a visiting home care provider might take a patient’s vitals and find that his or her blood pressure is elevated. If the patient is currently being treated for hypertension, the provider can be prompted to make sure that he or she follows up with their physician. In the case study, hypertension control rates have been maintained at over 90 percent.
Ensuring Consistent Care Through enterprise departments, specialists have determined standards of care for different specialties and conditions. This helps ensure the best and most consistent care for patients regardless of how rural their area is. With more transparency, participating providers have access to information regarding other providers, which inspires all to do their best work. DCI’s training and compliance certification modules can be used to the same effect. DCI’s software can be integrated with technologies that are helping to improve the delivery of home health care services. Contact us to learn more about how our software allows businesses to improve quality of care.