Research paper on Health Care in New Zealand

Health care professionals have scarce experience of using electronic health records. Therefore they may face difficulties with using them effectively and, more important, they may provoke information breaches because of the lack of skills of using electronic health records. Hence, health care professionals can make errors and provoke information breaches that may affect the privacy of patients. In such a situation, patients may be uncertain in their privacy. Therefore, they will not be confident in health care professionals that will lead to their resistance to the introduction of electronic health records, regardless of their obvious benefits for patients’ health.

B Approaches to implementing electronic health records in New Zealand

The implementation of electronic health records also raises the problem of choosing the right approach to the implementation of electronic health records. In this regard, the centralized approach implies the creation of the national information system and standards of electronic health records, which have a homogeneous structure and protection at the national level. However such approach is complex and costly. The centralized approach involves the elaboration of the national information system and standards of electronic health records. As a result, health care professionals will be able to use them effectively in any part of the country, while patients can move safely from one region of New Zealand to another being certain that health care professionals will be able to use their electronic health records.

The distributed approach implies the development of electronic health records at the local level but this approach raises the problem of the adequate information sharing nationwide. However, this approach has certain limitations because this approach may provoke the diversity of electronic health records standards. As a result, health care professionals may face difficulties with accessing them and sharing information concerning patients’ history and other important issues. Therefore, in actuality, the centralized approach is preferable for New Zealand.