Evidence vs. Wishful Thinking

Researching this topic proved to be pretty difficult. There was only limited information on how technology is able to reduce health care cost. Also, many of the sites and references available did not seem like a reliable source. I obviously was unable to think of ten ways that technology could aid in this problem, however I did zero in on a few good ideas and provided significant evidence in how to go about executing these technological advances in order to reduce the errors in health care systems. I don't believe that many of the references vested in personal interest in making the claims, but rather provided suggestions for other sources through extensive research to help solve the issue. This includes recognizing and analyzing the rate of medical administration errors that occur in a hospital and how it deters patient recovery; therefore increasing overall health care cost for others. Most of the references I used in order to verify the role of technology were more than just wishful thinking. However that does not mean that there were not numerous sites with only wishful outlooks out on the web.

Health Care: The Role of Technology

Technology may be used in order to reduce the cost of health care. It is important to standardize medication processes and procedures as well as prevent errors within the heatlh care systems. According to the Agency of Health care and Research Quality, there are five main error-prone stages of the medication process
1)Ordering/Prescribing
2)Transcribing and Verifying
3)Dispensing and Delivering
4)Administering
5)Monitoring and Reporting
(Hughes & Blegen)

A drug administration error is a discrepancy between the drug therapy received by the patient and the drug therapy intended by the prescriber (Low & Belcher).Technologies may be developed in order to reduce these errors, beginning from when the Pharmacists prescribe the medication to when the nurse actually administers the medication to the patient. Developing specific technology such as computerized pharmacy systems as well as computerized medication administration would ensure that the patient is receiving the right medicine and the right amount at the right time. This can be ensured by using technology such as automated charts of administration time and the quantity of the drug dosage as well. Robotic Drug Preparation could provide the medicine with an accurate bar code and effectively distinguish between medicine that appear similar (Walton, Medication Administration. Computerization is the key role in the solution of drug administration errors.
Technology is also used in order to identify a patient. Medications sent from the pharmacy to the patient are bar coded to match the identification bracelet worn by the patient which significantly reduces the error (Low & Belcher). Health care cost can obviously reduced if the average time spent in the hospital is decreased. Errors do not facilitate a quick recovery and can sometimes delay the amount of time spent in the hospital.
Technology may also assist in standardizing medical procedures as well. When all health care systems are uniform in quality, in guarantees a competent staff and sound quality while the American people have to pay for the variability

References
Walton, G. (n.d.). Technology. In Medication Administration. Retrieved from
Carilion Health Center
website:http://www.ehealthinternational.org/pdfs/Walton.pdf
Hughes, R., & Blegen, M. (n.d.). Medication Administration Safety. Retrieved from
Agency for Healthcare Resarch and Quality
website:http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nurseshdbk/docs/HughesR_MAS.pdf
Low, Debra, & Belcher Jan (2002). Reporting Medcation Errors . Retrieved from
http://ovidsp.tx.ovid.com/spb/ovidweb.cgi

Health Care

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past months, it is impossible to be completely unaware of all the talk about our nation's health care system. There has been numerous discussions and a lot of media coverage about what our nation should do about the contention within health care cost, especially since the election of the new President who is adamant in administering a new health care plan. The plan involves expanding health coverage throughout America while reducing the cost; all while maintaining adequate quality. Sounds like a tough problem to go about solving, which is why I'm glad I am not the President of the United States.
Though I do not set out to be the future president of the U.S, but merely a bioengineer; and thinking like an engineer brings about the questions of how technology is able to reduce the cost of health care. Once again it might be up to engineers to do behind the scenes work in order to eradicate this pressing issue. I believe technology must play a key role in eliminating the errors within hospitals and clinics which ultimately saves money. Because within a company, it is evident that errors cost money.

Thinking like an Engineer

After having had a thorough discussion on swine flu and blogging about my thoughts on the pandemic, I still don't believe I have been through any sort of transformation toward thinking like a real engineer. Beginning to think like an engineer is going to take me a lot longer than a couple hours of doing research on swine flu and applying the research to answer relevant questions about the seriousness of the disease and its impact upon the nation. Dr. Bogen stated that it takes a person 10,000 hours to truly master a subject. Applying that number to the amount of hours I spent going through a decision making process with the knowledge gained, I don't suspect it is enough time to really go through a major transformation. Although it is a start, I don't believe that any evident changes in my thinking have occurred. Similar to most things that are new and unfamiliar, it takes awhile to adjust and begin to really apply the knowledge and develop a true understanding. One thing I am certain of is that practice makes perfect (or at least an improvement), so the only way to begin a transformation is to continue to document my decisions as well as extensively research the topic in order to apply it to a modern practice.

H1N1 Vaccine

If this coming fall there is an enormous outbreak of the swine flu virus and only a limited amount of vaccines available, I believe that certain people should receive the vaccine before others. Though even if there was a specific order in which people were to get vaccinated, I am not sure how the government would able to implement this process without causing a huge uproar among the American people. Those at the bottom of the list would feel cheated, upset, less important and angered that they were not given the same opportunity to be treated for the rising disease. However in my opinion I believe children and pregnant women should be the first to receive the vaccination. The next order of people in my list are those between the ages of 6-25. It might seem selfish of me to have the people within my age group be third to be given the vaccine however it is this age group that the virus has effected the most. Therefore, it only makes sense that those in this age group get hold of some medical assistance before they contract the disease and continue to spread it primarily among people of the same ages.

H1N1

It seems every where you go people are talking about the swine flu pandemic, scientifically known as the H1N1 virus. You could say that the topic of swine flu has been catching on like wildfire throughout the nation; discussed by scientists, researchers and above all the media. Similarly, the effects of the virus appear to be spreading from person to person at a rate equally as rapid. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention state that swine flu is spread in a way resembling that of the common seasonal flu. It travels mainly "from person to person through coughing or sneezing by people with the influenza." (Center for Disease Control) Because the virus is so easily transferred between people, I would definitely recommend receiving the swine flu vaccination. Especially living here on Penn's campus, amoungst thousands of other students that are frequently in close contact with one another, it is safe to have the vaccination in order to prevent contracting the virus. Students sit in close vicinity to one another during class lectures and often live with another student as well. And if a person does not acquire the disease through those means, then there is a higher chance that they obtain H1N1 during college social events such as parties and football games. Another reason that I would receive the vaccine is because H1N1 is unusual in that it has a greater effect in individuals 25 years of age or younger (CDC). In contrast to the seasonal flu, the swine flu has impacted a greater proportion of the younger population rather than those at the ends of the age spectrum (children younger than five and adults older than 64). This is the main reason why I believe many fear H1N1. Disregarding the role of the media, which fuels all of the hype pertaining to H1N1, people are afraid of the swine flu because its forceful attack on young people, something that is very different to other viruses. However I don't think that gives reason to overreact to current condition of this pandemic. Especially when the seasonal flu attributes to 36,000 deaths each year and there are only 550 confirmed deaths from H1N1 in the United States. (CDC)

References
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2009, August 5). H1N1 Flu. Retrieved from Center for Disease Control website: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/qa.htm

Assignment 1: BE

Similar to Dr. Bogen, this is the very first time I have experienced blogging. I never thought I could call myself a blogger, but it could be a good learning experience to see what other students have to think about Bioengineering.

i) I am not 100% sure why I chose to major in Bioengineering. All throughout high school you think about the career you'd like to pursue based off what subjects you enjoyed learning about the most. I definitely was intrigued by Biology, taking the class both my sophomore and senior year. In addition to being fascinated by functions of cells, tissues, and organs I also discovered that I have passion for helping people with various problems. Combining both of these aspects I came to the conclusion of possibly studying pre-med. Sometimes I ask myself why I didn't just major in biology or something less enduring, but maybe I just like to challenge myself and see what I am able to create when mentally pushed to my limit.


ii) Even after deciding to choose bioengineering as my major, I still am unsure what bio engineers actually do in their career. With a little online research before beginning school I discovered that a student with a degree in bioengineering is able to do multiple things upon graduating. But I believe that bio engineers use technology in order to provide solutions for current health related issues, in addition to using techniques to improve the quality of those with medical problems.


iii) If I were able to go back in time and help design and create a prominent biomedical device, I would be a part of the development of the pacemaker. The pacemaker was constructed in order to help regulate and control abnormal heart rhythms. A pacemaker is able to help an individual with irregular heart rhythms lead a more active lifestyle. Generating this device would be very important to me because I am an athlete here at Penn and have been playing sports all my life. As a result, I definitely encourage people to lead active lifestyles and participate in physical activities. Maintaining an adequate heart beat would allow those confined by heart problems be able to become active once more.


iv) Having minimal background on the subject of bioengineering, there are a lot of topics within this field that I have no knowledge about. Therefore I would enjoy learning anything about this subject so that I have a better understanding of what type of problems bio engineers deal with and if this is something I would actually like to pursue as a career. However I am most interested in genetics and DNA, so I would enjoy learning about how bio engineers modify and manipulate DNA in order treat genetic diseases.



v) Once bio engineers establish an innovative technological idea, what steps are taken toward constructing the device so it will be able to be effective? What type of material should be used? What is the appropriate size of the system? I want to know how difficult it can be to transfer a thought from paper to an actual model. In addition I would like to learn how to build simple biological technology or at least be able to look at piece of technology and know a general idea of how it was assembled.

vi) http://http//www.bio-pro.de/medtech/news/index.html?lang=en&artikelid=/artikel/04162/index.html
The following biomedical news article discusses the introduction of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS). The pluriptent cells are created through skin cells and may be able to be differentiated into specialized cells, similar to the qualites of embryonic stem cells. Most recently, Dr. Utikal of Mannheim University Hospital has succeeded in manipulating genes in order to significantly increase the rate of iPS production. The most interesting feature of the article explains the benefits and advantages of iPS cells. iPS cells are obtained without the destruction of embryos, which eliminates any ethical constraints that were evident in embryonic cells. Without the limitations of moral concerns, I believe scientist will be able to research and develop this technology more efficiently and in a brief time period as well. This is exciting news for those in the science world because it shows a positive step toward the advancement of cell replacement therapy.

vii) Another aspect of bioengineering that I find interesting is interaction of living systems and engineered devices. In order to produce effective materials it is important to first understand the systems within the organism and how the organism will react as a result of the application. I probably find this topic the most stimulating because of my interest in the medical field. But I look forward to learning all elements presented in bioengineering.