This revised edition includes a glossary that clarifies technical terms as well as a list of abbreviations for important terms. Links to Internet sources are provided to supplement the information on the major topics covered in each chapter.

The eighth edition covers the following topics:

• The five broad forces that will drive future change and potentially have profound impacts on HIT in and across organizations
• The role that government policy and healthcare reform play in influencing HIT
• HIT governance and strategic planning in healthcare organizations, including pertinent background, how to organize an HIT strategic planning effort, the importance of system integration, the basics of systems theory, and management control and decision support systems
• An overview of the various elements of an information system—the devices, programs, and communication networks—and possible configurations that will support clinical service delivery and the associated business processes
• An exploration of the ten key operational and tactical processes that are critical to maximizing HIT efficiencies and effectiveness, including incident management, change management, configuration management, service-level management, capacity management, and services-continuity management
• Specific focus on EHR applications and financial applications to reflect the importance of technology in the areas of patient care and financial management
• The major techniques used to evaluate an HIT investment