Benefits and problems in implementation for intergrated medical information system

Abstract

Purpose : Once the decision has been made to adopt an integrated medical information system (IMIS), there are a number of issues to overcome. Users need to be aware of the impact the change will make on end users and be prepared to address issues that arise before they become problems. The purpose of this study is to investigate the benefits and unexpected problems encountered in the implementation of IMIS and to determine a useful framework for IMIS.

Materials and Methods : The Yonsei University Dental Hospital is steadily constructing an IMIS. The vendor’s PACS software, Piview STAR, supports transactions between workstations that are approved to integrating the healthcare enterprise (IHE) with security function. It is necessary to develop an excellent framework that is good for the patient, healthcare provider and information system vendors, in an expert, efficient, and cost-effective manner.

Results : The problems encountered with IMIS implementation were high initial investments, delay of EMR enforcement, underdevelopment of digital radiographic appliances and software and insufficient educational training for users.

Conclusions : The clinical environments of dental IMIS is some different from the medical situation. The best way to overcome these differences is to establish a gold standard of dental IMIS integration, which estimates the cost payback. The IHE and its technical framework are good for the patient, the healthcare provider and all information systems vendors.