It’s about time that technology should work for the patients, and not making their lives more difficult.
So far, so good: the care could be excellent, the support staff friendly and competent, and the physicians attentive.
But it is the technology – or lack thereof – for a fairly simple process that boggled our mind.
Many doctors are interested in health information technology (HIT), as they observe and participate in many discussions about HIT over the last years.
However, when facing it, up close and personal, they are caught by surprise that reality has such a difficult time living up to the promise and capabilities.
We know health care is a complicated business, but so are marketplaces, airlines, banks, and many other mega-businesses that we deal with, online every day.
If a coffee chain can let us create a profile with our favorite drink and payment method, allowing us to order ahead and pick it up without even waiting in line, shouldn’t there be some way for our medical system to allow us to enter and retain the most basic information, so we don’t have to fill out form, after form, after form with every appointment, not to mention keeping a record of our test results and other health information?
We shouldn’t have to hold our breath when it comes to our health and hope that something is done accurately and efficiently.
Maybe it is time that cancer patients, caregivers, families, and many others, stand up and demand better attention to their personal needs when it comes to their interactions with health systems.
Some of these systems understand how to do it, while many others do not.
When you have a disease where treatment is as complex (and expensive) as cancer, the least you should expect is efficiency, where efficiency counts.
You need to be able to pay attention to taking care of yourself and your loved ones, and not have to worry whether some computer makes your life more complicated than it has to be.
It just shouldn’t be that way, don’t you agree?
