(Editor's note: This guest blog was written by Julie A. Dooling, RHIA, AHIMA Director, HIM Practice Excellence.)People are powerless to control unexpected events. What we can control is our response.When an unexpected event occurs in healthcare, instincts kick in, and professionals execute what they have learned through training.There are two ...

(This sponsored blog was written by Lee Ann Bryant, associate product manager, HealthStream.) Many think ICD-10 is only a coding problem, but the true challenge of ICD-10 is the need for increasing specificity and granularity in documentation in order to receive optimal reimbursement, meet all reporting requirements, and most accurately reflect ...

In anticipation of the HIMSS 2013 Annual Conference and Exhibition to be held March 3 to 7 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, New Orleans, ADVANCE interviewed Bonnie Cassidy, MPA, RHIA, FAHIMA, FHIMSS, senior director of HIM Innovation at Nuance and AHIMA approved ICD-10-CM/PCS trainer. Cassidy spent the majority of her career on the ...

  (Editor's Note: This guest blog was written by Alisa Ray, executive director, CCHIT.) The advent of health information exchanges (HIE) has added a new level of complexity to the challenges facing both healthcare providers and health information management professionals. Even as we work to establish interoperability among EHRs within ...

(Editor's Note: This guest blog was written from AHIMA's Health Information Integrity Summit by Sandra Kersten, MPH, RHIA, AHIMA director of HIM Solutions.) The American Health Information Management Association's Health Information Integrity Summit: The Quest for Safe, Usable, Quality Data in EHRs opened Thursday in Chicago with great insights ...

(Editor's Note: This guest blog was written from AHIMA 2012 by Sandra Kersten, MPH, RHIA, who is AHIMA director of HIM Solutions.) Aneesh Chopra, the former first American federal chief technology officer of the U.S., described President Obama's overall vision for innovation, or ''how will this country get its mojo back?'' within the context of ...

(This guest blog was written from AHIMA 2012 by Sandra Kersten, MPH, RHIA, who is AHIMA director of HIM solutions.) Three presentations on release of information (ROI) issues were a focus of Wednesday's educational track at AHIMA's 84th annual Convention and Exhibit in Chicago.Past AHIMA President Rita Bowen, MA, RHIA, CHPS, SSGB, shared her ...

  (Editor's Note: This guest blog was written from AHIMA 2012 by Harry B. Rhodes, MBA, RHIA, CHPS, CPHIMS, FAHIMA, who is AHIMA director of HIM solutions.) The goal of Meaningful Use Stage 2 is improved data reuse through standardized, structured, and interoperable exchange of discrete and timely patient information designed to improve the ...

(Editor's Note: This guest blog was written from AHIMA 2012 by Harry B. Rhodes, MBA, RHIA, CHPS, CPHIMS, FAHIMA, who is AHIMA's director of HIM solutions.) The primary purpose of a Health Information Exchange (HIE) is to serve as a hub for the secure, effective, and efficient exchange of health information in compliance with state and federal ...

In an April 20 press release, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) announced that it discovered a breach of patient information, which resulted when a document sent to an individual outside of UAMS for analysis of billing charges was not properly de-identified. A UAMS physician sent financial data to an individual who was not ...