Information Technologies

Information Technologies                                                                                                               1



Information Technologies                                                                                                               3
Bar codes, those familiar black lines that appear on almost all our consumer goods have made their way into the health care field.   While many consumers must be educated on the use of bar codes, providers must also understand the use and technology behind bar codes.   By scanning a bar code, the provider is able to determine what medication the patient is on, what time it is due and if any procedures or lab work is due.   Bar codes are the wave of the future in preventing medication errors and procedural errors.   Consumers and healthcare providers must be taught what these bar codes are used for.   The evolution of healthcare continues.

Information Technologies                                                                                                               4

As consumers we have accustom to bar coding on everything from groceries to library book, while bar coding an individual is becoming a way to prevent errors in hospitals. “Bar codes provide a simple method of encoding text information that can easily be read by inexpensive electronic scanners” (Bar coding, Encyclopedia of Small Business).   Bar coding is not new to healthcare it has been around since the 1970’s.  
“In healthcare bar coding technology has been employed in areas such as materials management, supply inventory and document management” (Managing Health Care Information Systems, p.131).   Bar coding is now being used to improve patient safety and reduce medication errors.   “Patient safety continues to be a primary focus of today’s healthcare industry and bar code administration (BCMA) has helped healthcare professionals achieve patient safety goals”(Bar coding helps improve patient safety, p. 1).
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