ADVANCE Perspective: HIM : Staffing Issues

Relationship Issues

Cheryl McEvoy — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:33:00 GMT

Over the past month or so, I delved into labor laws and IRS regulations to untangle the confusion surrounding employment status-namely, what distinguishes employees from independent contractors. And, as many of you already know, it's not easy. All those...(read more)

Difficult Personalities: The Know-It-All

Cheryl McEvoy — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:56:00 GMT

We're back for the third installment of our "Difficult Personalities" series. So far, we've escaped the needy co-worker's grasp and busted the " ghost " employee's vanishing routine. This time, we'll scale the know-it-all's mental pedestal to get a better...(read more)

How Much Do You Make?

Cheryl McEvoy — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 13:32:00 GMT

Pst . How's your salary looking? Did you finally get that raise, or is your facility paying like it's 1999? Our National HIM Salary Survey is back to help gauge your weight on the payment scale. With the rough-and-tumble economy, we're curious to see...(read more)

Difficult Personalities: The Ghost Employee

Cheryl McEvoy — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:44:00 GMT

It's somewhere, out there, in cyberspace. At least you think it is. It's that e-mail you sent 4 days ago that has yet to yield a response. The co-worker who seemed oh-so-willing to partner with you on a project has suddenly vanished, and you're stuck...(read more)

Take Our HIM Director/CIO Survey

Lisa Algeo — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 16:04:00 GMT

These days, a chief information officer (CIO) is much more than a department manager; he or she is an important part of the executive team. Similarly, the HIM director is more than just a medical record custodian. He or she is a bridge between the day-to-day realities of paper records and the long-term strategy for e-enablement of the entire organization. As hospitals transition from paper-based medical record keeping to electronic information, the two domains must come together - for the betterment of the entire organization.

When the two departments work in harmony and maintain mutual respect, the benefits are widespread. Not only is each party more productive (and most likely, happier); but the organization's technology and information management is better planned, managed and synchronized.

With nearly 30 percent of organizations reporting a fully electronic medical record, perhaps the time has come for HIM and IT (or health information services) to work closer together. In fact, many are already doing so.

We want to know how closely the HIM director and CIO are working together. We've created a survey that will provide an industry snapshot of reporting relationships between HIM and IT. With the move to electronic medical records, are these two departments working closer together and if so, how has the relationship kept pace with technology?

Go take our survey here and then come back and comment on the HIM director and CIO relationship at your facility.