Healthcare information management is a broad term to reach the scope of hospital and physician practice management needs. It encompasses a wide variety of products and services for the healthcare provider. Every phase of operation is affected by the other. Clinical, financial, and administrative departments must work together in an integrated and automatic fashion.
One of the top concerns of healthcare information management is meeting the requirements of HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). In reforming the insurance market, it introduced the requirements to ensure privacy and security in the transfer of health information. This is particularly important with the electronic transfer of any healthcare information.
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The entire process of capturing patient data, organizing it in a usable format, integrating and manipulating the data, then delivering it to the proper recipients is all a part of healthcare information management. The financial stability and success of any healthcare provider depends on the patients and how the information on these patients is handled. Special training and education is required to master the management of healthcare information. Technology is advancing rapidly and healthcare is certainly a key area. Digital medical records and the drive toward a paperless society is having a huge impact on hospital management.
Registration and scheduling of patients must be timely and accurate. Nurses’ notes document the information physicians need to make treatment adjustments. Physicians must have access to documentation at all times and have the ability to enter notes or orders quickly. Medical records and billing must have measures in place to keep on schedule. All of this is a part of managing healthcare information and must work seamlessly to keep a healthcare facility running smoothly and profitably.