How Healthcare Works, LLC

Throughout my career, I have been questioned about how public health and hospitals are related. The answer is, public health and hospitals are very closely related.  Although it may not seem apparent to the average onlooker, many facets of a hospital contain public health components and address public health issues. First, many hospitals are the cornerstone of the community.  The hospital provides the basis for health care and health information in many towns and cities throughout America.  An entire group of hospitals exist called public hospitals and most are members of America's Essential Hospitals (formerly the National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems). These hospitals meet the needs of the under-served and under-insured throughout the country. In addition to public hospitals, community hospitals provide many public health services that otherwise may not be present. Several smaller communities cannot support a public health department.  As a result

Photo courtesy of Unsplash.com There is a lot of discussion in healthcare right now regarding, EMR.  EMR stands for Electronic Medical Record.  EMR may also be referred to as EHR (Electronic Health Record).  It is essentially the same thing.  The EMR is comprised of any form of electronic medical record, and it has been around for a long time.  Examples of electronic medical records include lab reports, clinic visits, billing data, radiology reports, nursing notes, admission summaries and much more. The electronic medical record is essentially an electronic version of what was formerly placed in paper charts. However, many healthcare organizations still maintain paper charts in conjunction with the electronic records.   The records are stored in individual health organization system networks. Each time a patient visits a long term care facility, a hospital, or a clinic, the data is stored for review by nurses, doctors, and other staff. Because of HIPAA, only certain individuals