ABSTRACT
1. With technological advances, nurses in the workplace are challenged to continue the protection of confidential health records. 2. The security of health records can be viewed in three distinct categories: securing files from outside intrusion, maintaining the internal data security, and providing for recovery from disasterous events. 3. Common techniques for securing data include authenication, electronic firewalls, and data encryption.
Subject(s)
Computer Security , Confidentiality , Management Information Systems , Medical Records Systems, Computerized/organization & administration , Occupational Health Services , Commerce/organization & administration , Humans , Security Measures/organization & administrationABSTRACT
1. The occupational health nurse is often mandated by management to validate health services offered and programs developed for employees as valuable to the business and company mission. 2. The business plan of the occupational health service is a working document, changing as needs of the client/customer and internal and external business and socio-economic environment evolve. 3. Alignment with and support of the company mission, goals, and objectives is another method of proving good occupational health is good business. 4. Business planning is a basic business tool the wise and prudent occupational health nurse can use in proving good occupational health is vital to the success of a company.
Subject(s)
Commerce/organization & administration , Occupational Health Services/organization & administration , Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care/organization & administration , Humans , Planning Techniques , Program DevelopmentSubject(s)
Health Education , Health Promotion , Occupational Health Nursing , Humans , Program Development , Program EvaluationABSTRACT
There is a current trend for corporations to switch from in-house medical departments to outside contract organizations for provision of occupational health services. Although this may be driven by a desire to reduce expenses, there is little objective data on which to base this decision. This study compares the costs to a corporation of an in-house medical department with the costs for the same services if rendered by outside providers. Costs of the in-house department were obtained from company records. Prevailing charges for outside provider services were determined by an invoice survey and from other sources. We found that the cost for the in-house medical department was 42% less than that of the outside providers at the prevailing rates. Thus, the in-house medical department is more cost-effective than the outside providers. We also discuss other advantages of an in-house department that are more difficult to quantify.
