Pharmacists complete health IT communication loop: pharmacists leading the technology curve.

I understand completely what they are talking about in this article.

The author (Jamie I. Gooch) writes in great detail about how the new era is turning towards technology but some pharmacists feel as if they give technology a try either their job will be gone or it will take to much time to adjust to. He also states that the pharmacies have always been in front of the technology curve in the medical field by having all the records on the computer already. The bad part about that is in order to communicate with the the doctors and patients, the have to use a phone or fax which can be slow, unproductive and costly.

 As stated by Shelly Spiro, the president-elect of the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists, "the biggest hurdle is time," meaning that people want to see that the technology will work then the adoption process will start when they see that it works for the pilot group.

As of now the only people who are charged for the "technology" fee are the pharmacists who use it which could be one reason some stuff is too high, but when the technology fee is dispersed evenly and demands are higher for the technology, it will eventually lower the costs in the long run which will be less money out of the consumers pockets.

The article also states that the new generation is "addicted" to the technology curve that they will not mind what happens.They will just expect to communicate with their health care providers via technology; whether that be by Facebook, Myspace, or any of the other social media sites. 

"Being able to use the patients' electronic health record for pharmacy will help pharmacists take care of their patients more comprehensively," Harry Hagel said in regard to the use of technology in future care of the patients, "but it's going to take some time."

Strengths

I was able to see some of the future in what the pharmacists and doctors are planning on doing; they are planning on doing in the future. Some of the strengths in the use of technology in the pharmacy is that they can quickly transfer files and pull up the full history of a patient. The doctors and pharmacists may also be able to talk directly to the patients through social media sites. 

Weaknesses

In order for pharmacists to utilize technology, they will have to use some of the money out of their big pockets and pay for it, but this will not help the little old customers because the cost will be given to them in the long run. Until the cost is down for the companies the little people will be attacked and charged outrageous prices for the technology used. 

What I learned

I learned even if the companies want to use technology to make their jobs easier, they will not be able to do it because they will not be able to talk to the doctors and customers for a while because of the difference in technology that they use. The slowness or lack of communication of fax and phone between each makes the job of the dealers harder because they have to listen to the doctor then put it in the computer then finally give it to the patient. Some doctors do not want to change what they have been doing for years and will not change for the better and that they do not want to be charged "extra" for the new technology coming into the world. 

I would recommend this article for others because it shows what people are able to accomplish by technology and the hardships found in the future because people do not want to change they old ways. The pharmacies also have an idea on how to use the social media to interact with their patients.

Source.

Gooch, Jamie I. "Pharmacists complete health IT communication loop: pharmacists leading the technology curve." Managed Healthcare Executive 19.9 (2009): 25+. General OneFile. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. 
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