• Latest
  • Trending
Fax machines are still common in medicine — and med students are puzzled when forced to use this ancient technology

Fax machines are still common in medicine — and med students are puzzled when forced to use this ancient technology

February 12, 2018
4 dead, 52 arrested after Donald Trump supporters storm US Capitol

4 dead, 52 arrested after Donald Trump supporters storm US Capitol

January 7, 2021

China criticizes US order against dealing with Chinese apps

January 6, 2021

US has dual policy on Afghan peace process: MPs

January 5, 2021
‘Good riddance,’ says China snub Germany leaving UN Security Council

‘Good riddance,’ says China snub Germany leaving UN Security Council

December 25, 2020
Sharon Osbourne reveals she tested positive for COVID-19

Sharon Osbourne reveals she tested positive for COVID-19

December 15, 2020
Apple Adding Privacy Fact Labels to App Store Items

Apple Adding Privacy Fact Labels to App Store Items

December 15, 2020
More Republicans finally accept Biden win after U.S. Electoral College certifies vote

More Republicans finally accept Biden win after U.S. Electoral College certifies vote

December 15, 2020
Rhode Island casts 4 Electoral College votes for Biden

Rhode Island casts 4 Electoral College votes for Biden

December 15, 2020
Rhode Island School To Stagger Return After Holiday Break

Rhode Island School To Stagger Return After Holiday Break

December 15, 2020
Twitter, Facebook face labeling test on Trump’s election posts

Twitter, Facebook face labeling test on Trump’s election posts

November 4, 2020
Democratic hopes to flip US Senate dim as red wall holds for now

Democratic hopes to flip US Senate dim as red wall holds for now

November 4, 2020
US election: What happens next?

US election: What happens next?

November 4, 2020
Tuesday, January 26, 2021
No Result
View All Result
  • Region
    • Delaware
    • Maine
    • Massachusetts
    • New Hampshire
    • New Jersey
    • New York
    • Pennsylvania
    • Rhode Island
    • Vermont
  • U.S. News
  • National Security
    • Defense
    • Politics
    • Terrorism
  • World News
    • Africa
    • Asia
      • Australia & New Zealand
      • China
      • India
      • Japan
      • North & South Korea
    • Canada
    • Europe
      • Germany
      • Russian Federation
    • Latin America
      • Mexico
    • Middle East
    • United Kingdom
  • Economy
    • Business
    • Science
  • Sports
    • Auto Racing
    • Cycling
    • Golf
    • MLB
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Mets
    • NBA
      • Boston Celtics
      • Brooklyn Nets
    • NFL
      • New England Patriots
      • Philadelphia Eagles
      • New York Giants
      • New York Jets
    • NHL
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Soccer
    • Tennis
    • Water Sports
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Books & Literature
    • Fashion
    • Health
    • History
    • Lifestyle & Family
    • Music
    • Religion
    • Television & Movies
    • Theatre
    • Travel
      • Great Outdoors
      • Rhode Island Travel
    • Women
  • Environment
    • Climate Change
    • Green News
    • Greenpeace
    • Oceans & Marinelife
    • Wildlife
  • Region
    • Delaware
    • Maine
    • Massachusetts
    • New Hampshire
    • New Jersey
    • New York
    • Pennsylvania
    • Rhode Island
    • Vermont
  • U.S. News
  • National Security
    • Defense
    • Politics
    • Terrorism
  • World News
    • Africa
    • Asia
      • Australia & New Zealand
      • China
      • India
      • Japan
      • North & South Korea
    • Canada
    • Europe
      • Germany
      • Russian Federation
    • Latin America
      • Mexico
    • Middle East
    • United Kingdom
  • Economy
    • Business
    • Science
  • Sports
    • Auto Racing
    • Cycling
    • Golf
    • MLB
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Mets
    • NBA
      • Boston Celtics
      • Brooklyn Nets
    • NFL
      • New England Patriots
      • Philadelphia Eagles
      • New York Giants
      • New York Jets
    • NHL
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Soccer
    • Tennis
    • Water Sports
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Books & Literature
    • Fashion
    • Health
    • History
    • Lifestyle & Family
    • Music
    • Religion
    • Television & Movies
    • Theatre
    • Travel
      • Great Outdoors
      • Rhode Island Travel
    • Women
  • Environment
    • Climate Change
    • Green News
    • Greenpeace
    • Oceans & Marinelife
    • Wildlife
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result

Fax machines are still common in medicine — and med students are puzzled when forced to use this ancient technology

February 12, 2018
in Culture, Technology
0
Home Culture
Post Views: 174

 

Amol Utrankar was in his second year of medical school and working a shift at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennessee, when a supervisor asked him to obtain a new patient’s medical records.

Utrankar, who was 22 at the time, needed to get the records from a smaller community hospital, where the patient was previously getting treatment. That involved filling out a standard records request form with the patient’s signature, and faxing it over.

The only problem? Utrankar did not know how to use a fax machine.

RelatedPosts

China criticizes US order against dealing with Chinese apps

Trump says deadline for TikTok sale won’t be extended

Microsoft warns: Russia, China hackers targeting US vote

Zuckerberg Says Conservatives Don’t Rule Facebook. Data Says He’s Wrong

US companies are sticking with China despite rising tensions and pressure

“It was embarrassing,” he admitted.

After consulting a nearby nurse, Utrankar learned how to input a number by putting the page in the right slot, physically pressing the buttons, dialing out, and collecting a confirmation fax. But after he sent the request, unlike with email or SMS messages, he had no idea whether the right person had received it.

“I had zero context for how to make it work,” said Utrankar.

Utrankar is far from alone. Thousands of would-be doctors from across the country are learning to use outdated technologies like pagers and fax machines for the first time while in medical training. About a dozen medical students told CNBC that they had never seen a fax machine before, let alone operated one.

Resurrecting the dinosaur

Fax machines have all but disappeared in most industries, but continue to thrive in health care.

Part of the reason is tradition, as many older doctors simply feel comfortable with the technology and refuse to let it go.

It’s also considered safe and secure under today’s privacy laws. HIPAA, the federal regulations that govern how patient health records are shared, specifically state that fax machines or mail are acceptable methods for doctors to transmit a medical record.

Health care has also been slower to digitize than other sectors.

Until recently, most patient medical records were stored on paper. It took a huge investment of federal dollars to incentivize doctors to adopt digital systems, known as electronic medical records. But it remains a challenge for doctors to share patient information, especially with hospitals that use a different electronic medical record vendor.

For these reasons, many technologists are skeptical that the medical community will adopt an alternative anytime soon.

“Every hospital, no matter how small, has a fax machine, so it’s the safest and easiest way to get the information you need,” said Nate Gross, a physician and the co-founder of Doximity, a start-up that came up with a product called DocFax that lets doctors send faxes without a physical fax machine.

“It will take another decade or two before health care is no longer reliant on the fax machine,” he said.

Hurting patients

Young medical students might feel frustrated that they’re forced to use such ancient technologies in their workplace. But many shared a greater concern about the impact on their patients.

Medical offices that receive fax requests are sometimes only open for a few hours. And information can arrive in a piecemeal fashion, which requires further requests (and faxes). There’s also the security risk of having sensitive patient records sit in a fax machine, where anyone walking past could take a look.

Jordan D. Anderson, a student at Harvard Medical School, recalls a recent case where he needed to make a request for a patient’s records in the middle of the night. That particular patient had gotten sick while at the airport and had only been in town to visit family. So their records were elsewhere.

It took four hours before the doctors at Harvard received the necessary medical information.

That’s a long time for a medical team to wait for access to notes, charts, procedures, test results and more. That kind of delay often leads to duplicate tests to rule out potential diagnoses, which are expensive and potentially avoidable.

“Clearly the technology exists to allow us to have access to another hospitals’ medical record system and just search for the thing we need,” said Anderson.

Medical record vendors like Epic Systems are addressing the problem for hospitals that use its software, although that doesn’t extend to those outside the network. And new open standards are popping up to exchange health information electronically. Even consumer technology companies like Apple and Alphabet are getting involved to give patients better access to their own information.

But for now, the fax machine is here to stay.

Source :
CNBC
Tags: ancientFax machinesmed studentsmedicinepuzzledTechnology
ShareTweetShare

Related Posts

Business

China criticizes US order against dealing with Chinese apps

January 6, 2021
Sharon Osbourne reveals she tested positive for COVID-19
Culture

Sharon Osbourne reveals she tested positive for COVID-19

December 15, 2020
Apple Adding Privacy Fact Labels to App Store Items
Business

Apple Adding Privacy Fact Labels to App Store Items

December 15, 2020
Rhode Island casts 4 Electoral College votes for Biden
Featured

Rhode Island casts 4 Electoral College votes for Biden

December 15, 2020
Best Accounting Software and Invoice Generators of 2020
Business

Best Accounting Software and Invoice Generators of 2020

October 27, 2020
Next Post
George Soros hits back at ‘toxic, personal criticism’ and defends donation to anti-Brexit campaign

George Soros hits back at 'toxic, personal criticism' and defends donation to anti-Brexit campaign

Translate

Popular Post

4 dead, 52 arrested after Donald Trump supporters storm US Capitol
Featured

4 dead, 52 arrested after Donald Trump supporters storm US Capitol

January 7, 2021
0

The chaotic and violent scene unfolded at the US Capitol as supporters of President Donald Trump swarmed the building to...

Read more
Mattis to Reassure Nervous Asian Allies

Mattis to Reassure Nervous Asian Allies

October 13, 2017
Asian Company Invest In America As Trump Takes Office

Asian Company Invest In America As Trump Takes Office

October 13, 2017
Trump lost: 9th Circuit Court declines restoring travel ban

Trump lost: 9th Circuit Court declines restoring travel ban

October 13, 2017
Central Intelligence: Gina Haspel new Deputy chief

Central Intelligence: Gina Haspel new Deputy chief

October 13, 2017
  • About Us
  • Creative Commons
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us

Topics

Follow Us

About Us

Varnum Continental is part of Varnum Continental Media Group LLC, which daily news around the globe.

© 2011 Varnum Continental

No Result
View All Result
  • Region
    • Delaware
    • Maine
    • Massachusetts
    • New Hampshire
    • New Jersey
    • New York
    • Pennsylvania
    • Rhode Island
    • Vermont
  • U.S. News
  • National Security
    • Defense
    • Politics
    • Terrorism
  • World News
    • Africa
    • Asia
      • Australia & New Zealand
      • China
      • India
      • Japan
      • North & South Korea
    • Canada
    • Europe
      • Germany
      • Russian Federation
    • Latin America
      • Mexico
    • Middle East
    • United Kingdom
  • Economy
    • Business
    • Science
  • Sports
    • Auto Racing
    • Cycling
    • Golf
    • MLB
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Mets
    • NBA
      • Boston Celtics
      • Brooklyn Nets
    • NFL
      • New England Patriots
      • Philadelphia Eagles
      • New York Giants
      • New York Jets
    • NHL
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Soccer
    • Tennis
    • Water Sports
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Books & Literature
    • Fashion
    • Health
    • History
    • Lifestyle & Family
    • Music
    • Religion
    • Television & Movies
    • Theatre
    • Travel
      • Great Outdoors
      • Rhode Island Travel
    • Women
  • Environment
    • Climate Change
    • Green News
    • Greenpeace
    • Oceans & Marinelife
    • Wildlife

© 2011 Varnum Continental