The Patient Care Improvement Plan - Essay Example

"The Patient Care Improvement Plan" is an outstanding example of a paper on care.
Allied Health Professions work as a group or team to make a holistic health care system by providing a range of diagnostic, technical, therapeutic and direct patient care and support services that are critical to the other health professionals they work with (Kennedy, 2008, 54). Radio Technology and Medical Technology are some of the allied health specialties that involve in the field of health to promote the continuity of care for patients (Shi & Singh, 2008, p. 147). 

As the health care industry progressed with increased usage of technology, patients were more beneficial with these changes as well as the health care professionals for it makes their work done in lesser time. The radiologist performs diagnostic imaging examinations like x-rays, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and mammography. It is a medical specialty that employs the use of imaging tools used both to diagnose and treat disease visualized within the human body(Keogh, 2011, p. 143) while Medical technologists perform essential laboratory testing that is critical to the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disease. They may also perform complex and sophisticated laboratory analysis, evaluate the effects that a patient’s physiological conditions have on the results of the test performed, confirm test results and provide the physician with the necessary data to determine the presence, extent, cause, and treatment of the disease(Field, 2007, p. 110). 

Both procedures provide a great impact on Respiratory care as they follow instructions carefully and work as part of a team. In a typical check-up in a hospital, the Chest X-ray is done by the radiologist which is the common and initial procedure to be accomplished particularly in the respiratory care of the patient to evaluate lung conditions and complications. If the chest result reveals that there is an existing lung problem, medical technologists do the laboratory work to confirm the microorganism causing the disease resulting to have a long term care treatment of a patient. Evaluating the changes in the result of those examinations is monitored closely before a physician order for the discharge of the patient. On the other hand, because x-ray imaging and some laboratory works are fast and easy, it is particularly useful in an outpatient clinic. 

Radiologist and Medical Technologist are both allied health profession that does not often interact directly with patients but their work directly influences patients’ lives because physicians rely on the information provided by a radiologist and medical technologists then correlate the findings gathered with the results of other examinations and tests, and make determinations about further examinations or testing necessary for treatment and diagnosis. 

If ever a hospital is not accessible to these specialties and lack of equipment to be used, patient’s care will interfere thus resulting to delay of application of necessary treatment. The hospital can utilize the referral system to transfer the patient to another accredited hospital because functions of different allied professions vary from another as it underwent to the specific educational requirement to be fully skilled and it cannot be substituted by unskilled professionals.  Problems may arise such as damage to equipment, incorrect interpretation of results resulting in wrong treatment if non – skilled persons insist to take over the function.  

There is a willingness in me to be cross-trained for the function so that it will complement my skills and as part of the interdisciplinary team this will benefit the services offered to every patient. Cross-trained professionals who are qualified can now be able to occupy the function of the other. Consequently, in the health care policy, they encouraged health care professions for cross-training to offer their employees to learn additional skills that help them grow in their profession (Milstead, 2004, p. 12).