Click Here for Change: Your Guide to the E-Advocacy Revolution

Describes how organizations are using state-of-the-art technology to engage supporters and improve their advocacy efforts. Includes case studies and lessons on how to incorporate electronic approaches in campaign strategies

Implementing a fax referral program for quitline smoking cessation services in urban health centers: a qualitative study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Fax referral services that connect smokers to state quitlines have been implemented in 49 U.S. states and territories and promoted as a simple solution to improving smoker assistance in medical practice. This study is an in-depth examination of the systems-level changes needed to implement and sustain a fax referral program in primary care.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study involved implementation of a fax referral system paired with a chart stamp prompting providers to identify smoking patients, provide advice to quit and refer interested smokers to a state-based fax quitline. Three focus groups (n = 26) and eight key informant interviews were conducted with staff and physicians at two clinics after the intervention. We used the Chronic Care Model as a framework to analyze the data, examining how well the systems changes were implemented and the impact of these changes on care processes, and to develop recommendations for improvement.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Physicians and staff described numerous benefits of the fax referral program for providers and patients but pointed out significant barriers to full implementation, including the time-consuming process of referring patients to the Quitline, substantial patient resistance, and limitations in information and care delivery systems for referring and tracking smokers. Respondents identified several strategies for improving integration, including simplification of the referral form, enhanced teamwork, formal assignment of responsibility for referrals, ongoing staff training and patient education. Improvements in Quitline feedback were needed to compensate for clinics' limited internal information systems for tracking smokers.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Establishing sustainable linkages to quitline services in clinical sites requires knowledge of existing patterns of care and tailored organizational changes to ensure new systems are prioritized, easily integrated into current office routines, formally assigned to specific staff members, and supported by internal systems that ensure adequate tracking and follow up of smokers. Ongoing staff training and patient self-management techniques are also needed to ease the introduction of new programs and increase their acceptability to smokers.</p

Modelling the integration of BP and IT using business process simulation

Information Technology (IT) and Business Process (BP) communities argues that the use of IT to support business processes can bring a number of benefits to the organisation. Most of these benefits, however, can only be seen after the implementation of such technology. Moreover, there are many cases where the benefits brought by the implementation of IT do not fulfil the organisation’s expectations. One reason of this may happen is because research in BP and IS domains show little indication of which modelling methods, techniques or tools can help organisations to foresee the benefits of the integration of IT with BP. This paper describes the insights gained during a UK funded research project, namely ASSESS-IT, which used simulation techniques to address this problem. Considering IT as a two layered system, namely Information Systems (IS) and Computer Networks (CN), ASSESS-IT aimed to depict the benefits that new IT may bring to the BP. This paper uses the outcomes derived from ASSESS-IT to suggest that, in some cases; the relationship between BP and IT could be better understood by looking at the relationship between BP and IS alone. It then proposes an alternative simulation framework, namely ISBPS, that provides the means to develop simulation models that portray quantifiable metrics of the integration of BP and IS, offering in this way an alternative mechanism that can help BP and IS analyst to foresee the benefits that the insertion of a given IS design may bring to the organisational processes

EDI - XML Standards and Technologies in the Agri-Food Industry

Due to globalisation, the new technological developments and the complexity of food supply processes, the European food sector is increasingly becoming more complex. The consumers’ trust in food, triggered and affected by a number of food crises, is low. Today, consumers increasingly expect safe and high quality food and demand information about the origin of their food. Also, the economic health of the food industry can be greatly affected by food crises; therefore, efficient and effective mechanisms are required to assist the food industry in tracking and tracing products along the food chain. In this paper, we discuss the criteria for an efficient and effective traceability system from an IT perspective (mainly data exchange) and we identify key requirements for ICT enabled traceability

Electronic Medical Record Adoption in New Zealand Primary Care Physician Offices

Describes EMR adoption in New Zealand's primary healthcare system, including how government investment was secured and data protection laws, unique patient identifiers, and standards and certification were established, with lessons for the United States

The Trustworthy Communication Environment for Secure Online Transfer of Medical Records

This paper proposes a framework for electronic medical record (EMR) system implementation. Currently, the medical industry is experiencing a rapid increase in computerization. The medical companies are trying to improve and streamline business processes, which is leading to organizational changes. More and more physicians communicate with their patients by means of a desktop, notebook or pocket PC. On the way to a paperless medical office IS/MIS organizations need to create trustworthy communication environments, in which all communications are through computers, not pens and paper. This research suggests a trustworthy framework of an EMR system, which provides a solution to the problems of secure on-line transmission of electronic signatures (e-signatures), attached to medical documents. The experimental model proposes a set of conceptual variables

A Case Study on Non Performing Loans: Hong Leong Finance's Experience

HLFB is one of the leading financial institutions in the country. The company has achieved quantum leap in the increase of the number of branches at the end of 1993 with the acquisition of Visia Finance Berhad. The company was the first finance company in the country to computerize the deposit and loans business between 1981 and 1985. In 1999, HLFB has embarked on opening "In Store" branches. The loan base of the company had increased rapidly, especially from year 1996 to 1997, from RM5,721 million to RM7,544 million and the loan base had grown by 32 percent within the stipulated period. Due to the high loan base, the company has embarked on loan regionalization (decentralization) in September 1996. With the regionalization, it reduces bottleneck in head office. Non-performing loans (NPLs) of the company is rising, from RM177 million in December 1995 to RM1,166 million in March 1999. In terms of percentage, the rate had increased from 4.4 percent to 16.6 percent within the stipulated period. The Chief Operating Officer was very concerned on the rising NPLs and the manager of credit control department was requested to look into the issue. In the past, the company had focussed its lending on corporate loans. The case reveals that corporate loans had contributed to majority of the NPLs and Kuala Lumpur Main office and Johore Bahru Regional loan centre were the two offices that had the highest NPLs rate. To overcome the problem faced by HLFB, two approached were recommended to implement for the reduction of NPLs rate. These two approaches are an immediate approach and preventive approach. Eight different ways to reduce the NPLs under immediate approach were recommended. A preventive approach is quality lending. This approach is used to prevent new loans from becoming problem loans. In this approach, more emphasize is based on quality instead of quantity. Recommendation was make to change the portfolio mix of the company, that is to go for more consumers lending instead of corporate lending, as the risk for corporate loans is higher. To ensure a successful implementation and also to achieve a desirable result, HLFB must always improve the process by going through the process of Planning, Deploying and Reviewing

Managing Global Training Utilizing Distance Learning Technologies and Techniques: The United States Army Readiness Training

Distance learning (e-learning) is expanding at a very rapid pace as organizations throughout the world search for economical, responsive, and effective means to train workers to meet the challenges of the information age workplace. The Army Distance Learning Program (TADLP) model is discussed in the context of the global e-learning environment. Both e-learning infrastructure and management issues are identified, with emphasis on: (1) developing policy, (2) measuring performance, (3) managing resources, (4) maintaining standards, and (5) satisfying users. The TADLP program is challenging to manage effectively, and difficult to accurately assess program outcomes. The TADLP program is shown to have a well-executed infrastructure plan, quality management of both facilities and services by contractor-supplied staff, and well-designed classrooms. However, the program suffers from limited courseware, creating a bottleneck for full program utilization. A discussion follows relating the Army program to public and private e-learning programs and expectations.