ADVANCE Perspective: HIM : AHIMA convention

AHIMA 2009: A Thorough Account

Cheryl McEvoy — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:07:00 GMT

I'm about to head off to the final round of general sessions at the AHIMA Convention and Exhibit, which means it's time for some overall reflections. The general consensus among attendees has been that this year's sessions have been particularly informative....(read more)

AHIMA 2009: The Health Information Bill of Rights

Cheryl McEvoy — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:41:00 GMT

At a news conference yesterday, the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) unveiled its Health Information Bill of Rights, a set of seven principles designed to protect and promote patient access to personal health information. Craig...(read more)

AHIMA 2009: Busy Day for All

Lisa Algeo — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 03:06:00 GMT

Well, my feet hurt, my brain hurts and I can barely keep my eyes open at this point, but it was all well worth it. My first day at the AHIMA 2009 conference did not disappoint. Busy is an understatement, and I even got a bit of a cardio workout in-with...(read more)

AHIMA 2009: Hometown Hospitality

Cheryl McEvoy — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:08:00 GMT

They say everything's bigger in Texas, and that even goes for their welcomes. Following yesterday's pre-conference events, attendees at the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) Convention and Exhibit were treated to a Welcome Reception...(read more)

AHIMA 2009: The Next Generation

Cheryl McEvoy — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 17:22:00 GMT

My first day at the 2009 American Health Information and Management Association (AHIMA) Convention and Exhibit is off to a great start. I attended the Student Academy this morning, where Barbara Black, director of human resources, and Gwen Hughes, director...(read more)

Texas Bound

Lisa Algeo — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 01:42:00 GMT

I'm headed to Texas tomorrow and looking forward to meeting many of you attending the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) convention. I wasn't able to attend last year's meeting in Seattle, so I'm especially excited to get out there...(read more)

AHIMA 2009: Off to Grapevine

Cheryl McEvoy — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 14:11:00 GMT

Anytime someone mentions this year's American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) Convention and Exhibit, I immediately think of the song, "I Heard it Through the Grapevine," because, well, the event's being held in Grapevine, TX. Problem...(read more)

An Introduction

Rob Senior — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:48:00 GMT

Greetings! My name is Rob Senior, and I am the newest member of the editorial staff at ADVANCE for Health Information Professionals . For the past eight years, I've worked at ADVANCE in a similar role for the Physical Therapists and PTAs magazine. In...(read more)

See You in Grapevine!

Lynn Jusinski — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:09:00 GMT

Well, it's over, and what a conference it's been. The 2008 AHIMA Convention wrapped up today with a stirring presentation by Chris Gardner, the author of "The Pursuit of Happyness." Audience members laughed at certain points and welled with emotion at others as Gardner wound through his amazing and inspirational story.

Today AHIMA members also got a chance to see the 2009 AHIMA Board of Directors, and they heard from Vera Rulon, MS, RHIA, CCS, president-elect of AHIMA. Rulon read a letter that she wrote to the next President of the United States. She went through ways that HIM professionals can help with the issues in health care. "If the question is quality health care, Mr. President, our action is quality information," Rulon said.

Today was also the last day for the exhibit hall, and attendees enjoyed a coffee break there this morning before taking one last look at the vendors' wares.

I honestly can't believe the convention is over. It feels like not that long ago I was disembarking from a beautiful flight over the mountains and taking in the city of Seattle for the first time. I heard a ton of great information (and it will no doubt inspire future ADVANCE articles) and met a lot of great people.
The ADVANCE staff is hoping to hit the town tonight for the last time, and we'll be visiting the Pike Street Public Market and definitely stopping somewhere for dessert. Seattle is a great, vibrant city and I'm happy I got a chance to see it. I hope the HIM professionals who trekked here feel the same.

ROI To the HIE (Or: 'How Many Acronyms Can HIM Create?')

Cheryl McEvoy — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 22:52:00 GMT

As someone who recently went through the hassle of filling out paper forms at a new physician's office only to be reprimanded for failing to send my medical records ahead of the appointment, I can understand why health information exchange (HIE) is a hot topic. And despite murmurs of doomed regional health information organizations (RHIO), this morning's presentation by Margaret Ezell, PhD, and Ty Humpert from Universata explained just how a hospital's current release of information (ROI) policies--note to self: send ROI form to previous provider--can be used as a spring board to establish HIE.

Dr. Ezell urged AHIMA members to "get involved and go help your community" to develop an HIE/RHIO program. According to Dr. Ezell, the switch from paper to electronic releases, which is an essential step toward HIE, can save facilities as much as $20,000 on mailings and $5,000. When the "time factor" is taken into account, such as improvements in productivity and turnaround time, savings can reach an estimated $50,000 to $75,000, Ezell said.

But before establishing HIE, facilities must invest time and effort to ensure a smooth transition and robust end result. Dr. Ezell offered the following tips for HIM professionals looking to lead the way toward HIE:

1) Learn the buzz words. HIE involves a number of terms, such as HIO and RHIO. "You are going to need to know them to sit at the table with the C suite," Dr. Ezell said. HIM leaders should know the key elements of HIE and the differences between facility-based and regional governing bodies before heading to the CEO, chief financial officer or chief information officer.

2) Get to the table. Engage the C suite in a conversation about HIE and make your presence known. Find ways to ensure that your HIM department will be part of the effort, Dr. Ezell advised. "You gotta have your staff involved," she later reiterated.

3) Clean up your data. Go through the master patient index and remove duplicate records. According to Dr. Ezell, clean-up at one facility identified 20,000 duplicate records. Take the time now to get organized so you don't pay for it later.

4) Start now. HIE won't be achieved overnight, but "you can notch away at it," Humpert said. He suggested identifying the facility's top 20 ROI requestors and working with those organizations and providers when transitioning to electronic requests, while Dr. Ezell said any action that helps the move toward electronic records--whether you're just starting to scan, have a hybrid record or are fully electronic--is progress.

Dr. Ezell and Humpert admitted that establishing HIE is a large undertaking, but they noted several facilities that have achieved success. The Medical University of South Carolina, which responds to over 200 requests from Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) every month, generated a spreadsheet file that allows requests to be viewed in the BCBS account on the facility's HIE. The Lakeland Regional Medical Center in Florida built an exchange that enables medical records of "snowbirds" to be transferred from the Florida facility to other providers in northern states.

The session offered plenty to think about and much to hope for, but something tells me my physician's small paper-based office isn't planning to link up an HIE anytime soon. Alas, the knowledge I've gained at this convention is proving to be a double-edged sword.

Looking Forward

Lynn Jusinski — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 14:39:00 GMT

Yesterday's general sessions were all about looking to the future of health care, and, as Jonathan Perlin, MD, PhD, MSHA, FACP, FACML, clinical services, HCA, said at his presentation, HIM professionals are optimistic, not just hopeful, about what lies ahead.

Dr. Perlman showed shocking statistics about the state of health care in America, and then used the VA's work, along with HCA's work, to show that the future can hold positive changes to the state of health care as we know it in America. There's a challenging journey ahead, Dr. Perlman said, and HIM professionals will be leading the way.

Later in the day, in one of the educational sessions, I got a chance to see just how HIM professionals are changing the future with health information technology. I attended a presentation by Danielle Berthelot, RHIA, HIM director and privacy officer, Women's Hospital, Baton Rouge, LA. Berthelot spoke about her hospital's journey to an EHR, and she organized her presentation into the thoughts that she wishes she had before the site implemented the technology.

First off, Berthelot said that organizations really need to look into why they are pursuing an electronic record in the first place. In a paper-based environment, she noted, HIM professionals are just "pushing information from one place to another," and not using the information or growing through the information. With an EHR, the technology becomes the center of the workflow, and all things amount to improving workflow and productivity for someone along the line.

Berthelot detailed the process of her own hospital's go live, and pointed out some of the challenges Women's Hospital had and many of the positives ahead in the future and happening currently because of the technology.

Berthelot closed by saying, "Thing are going to change. Nothing is going to remain the same. And it shouldn't."

She also asked the audience members if they were up for the challenge of change. The session was well-attended, and personally, I was impressed with Berthelot's honesty and determination, which both shined through during the presentation.

There's a Party Going on Right Here

Cheryl McEvoy — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:57:00 GMT

After beefing up on ICD-10 and RACs this afternoon, convention-goers got to let off some steam and show off their moves tonight at the President's Premier Celebration. This year's party turned back the clocks to the "hippie 60s" and "funkadelic 70s," and while I may not have experienced those decades first-hand, I was eager to join the time warp. The Experience Music Project (EMP) was an ideal setting for the rockin' night, offering free-form architecture, mirrored ceilings and a groovy vibe to boot.

Ever the enthusiastic attendees, HIM professionals donned tye-dye, sunglasses and Afros to channel the evening's theme, then headed to the dance floor to bust a move. A live funk band--complete with trumpet, bass guitar and trombone--kept attendees singing and the party pumping. From the moment party-goers entered the building, crowd-pleasers like "Oh Yes, It's Ladies' Night" (quite appropriate, I'd say) could be heard echoing throughout the EMP's multiple wings. And just in case the black lights and glow-in-the-dark cups weren't enough to set the mood, Jimi Hendrix and a member of Kiss were on hand to make sure even the wallflowers felt the beat.

After working up an appetite, attendees headed to the buffet, which featured tasty tidbits like cinnamon and clove spiced chicken skewers, BBQ meatballs and vegetarian pot-stickers--not exactly fondue, but party-goers didn't seem to complain. In fact, the general consensus for the evening was an enthusiastic thumbs up.