Before attempting this assignment, please make sure you have completed the assigned reading.

Shapiro, J. S., Mostashari, F., Hripcsak, G., Soulakis, N., & Kuperman, G. (2011). Using health information exchange to improve public health. American journal of public health, 101(4), 616-623.

Yasnoff, W. A., O'Carroll, P. W., & Friede, A. (2006). Public health informatics and the health information infrastructure. Biomedical Informatics, 537-563.

Write 350 words in response to the following questions.

Given the following scenario, discuss how EHRs and other health information technology might be used to address the situation.

You are the head of an electronic health record extension program within a state health department that is working with healthcare providers to adopt EHRs within their practices. You have been tasked with developing EHR functionality to improve the communication between the health department and these providers to facilitate public health performance in the essential public health services. In addition, you are responsible for identifying potential problems and formulating a plan to address them.

Describe at least THREE (3) different scenarios where EHRs can be used to facilitate communication between health departments and providers to improve performance in essential public health services.

Identify at least ONE (1) potential problem with each way selected.

(Here is an example of one scenario: STD clinics can provide automated notifications to the health department when clients test positive for HIV. Positive HIV lab results can be sent electronically via the clinic EHR systems. This enhances public health surveillance and assessment. One potential problem could be client confidentiality which would need to be protected by using a secure, encrypted reporting system.