This past week, Bainbridge State healthcare students received a glimpse of the newest healthcare being offered in Decatur County.BSC Associate Professor of Business & Medical Administrative Technology, Tatyana Pashnyak is ensuring her students are well-prepared for successful careers in healthcare technology.
She invited Bainbridge Memorial Hospital & Manor representatives Lee Harris and Angel Sykes to share their experiences with implementing the Decatur County Telehealth Initiative, which will benefit two Bainbridge elementary schools.
School-based clinics are currently being introduced to local public elementary schools. These clinics will be based in the school nurses’ office and allow students to receive health services from a licensed local physician via a real-time computer linkage, all without being absent from school.
This latest technology gives parents and caregivers the opportunity to ensure their child receives proper healthcare office visits and check-ups without having to take off work and take the child to a doctor’s office.
According to Sykes, the overall mission of the initiative is to make life better for the residents and children in Decatur County.
“We are very excited about this new technology and the benefits it gives to the children and parents,” said Sykes. “Our ultimate goal is for this service to be offered in all Decatur County Schools.”
With newly-offered programs such as BSC’s Medical Administrative Technology (MAT) and Health Information Technology (HIT), college students are being prepared for the changes in healthcare technology.
The MAT program focuses on preparing administrative healthcare personnel, such as hospital clerks and medical front office staff, while the HIT program prepares students for careers such as health data analysts and health information technicians. Each program strives to equip students with important knowledge and skills, so they will know what to expect in the field.
“The program mission is to prepare students for successful careers in healthcare technology,” said Pashnyak. “So connecting classroom knowledge and real-world information is a crucial component that results in meaningful learning experiences. When Mr. Harris and Ms. Sykes shared their experiences, class topics came to life as students learned about the benefits and challenges of telehealth implementation in their own community. It’s a valuable experience my students will be able to apply once they enter the workforce.”
As technology becomes even more advanced, people can become skeptical; however, with programs such as the ones offered at BSC, education can help alleviate the skepticism.
Sykes said, “People are skeptical of any new healthcare technology. The key to overcoming skepticism is education and experience. Once people understand it and get to see it in action, they begin to accept it. Our goal now is to educate the community about how telehealth works and how valuable this service is to providing healthcare to the children of Decatur County.”
Be the first to comment