E-HEALTH
E-health is seen as one of the most revolutionary methods of health care since the advent of modern medicine (Jolly, 2011). The aim of eHealth is to electronically connect different stages of care in order to share health information efficiently and securely (NEHTA, 2016). E Health can be categorised into three main areas;
1. Storing, managing and transmission of data
2. Clinical decision support
3. Facilitating care from a distance (Black et al., 2011)
A core component of this system is the My Health Record system which creates faster and easier access to health systems (NEHTA, 2016).
Such a widespread project is not void of barriers. There have been long-standing issues regarding privacy, access to records and whether the PCeHR system should be considered an “opt in” basis for individuals and providers and if this will provide an accurate summary of individual’s health and overall health climate (Jolly, 2011).
However, ehealth has been recognised as holding great potential to improve many areas of health, such as alleviating difficulties of distance with telemedicine, or reducing the costs of caring for an ageing population (Jolly, 2011).
"e-health can be considered to be the health industry's equivalent of e-commerce,"
- John Mitchell (Sydney, Australia)
*References for timeline included in full reference list. *