The Evolution of the Health Information Management Profession

1
The Evolution of the Health Information
Management Profession

• CHIMA Continuing Professional Education
• October 19, 2005
• Roseanne Gallant, Past Chair, COE

2
Presentation Outline

• Purpose
• Name Change
• Educational Requirements
• Certification / Credentialing
• Domains of Practice
• Professional designation, job titles and
  classification titles
• HRSDC National Occupational Code
• 2006 Stats Canada Census
• Mandatory CPE credits
• Marketing

3
Purpose

• Educate CHIMA members on changes to our
  profession
• Educate others
• all HIM professionals
• Employers
• Unions
• Educate HIM professionals on correct completion
  of the 2006 Stats Canada Census

4
Association College Name

• THEN
• Canadian Association of Medical Record Librarians
  (CAMRL) - 1942
• Canadian Health Record Association (CHRA) - 1976
• Canadian College of Health Record Administrators
  (CCHRA) - 1973

5
Association College Name

• NOW
• Canadian Health Information Management
  Association (CHIMA) - 2003
• College name currently unchanged but will be
  changed to Canadian College of Health Information
  Management (CCHIM)
• The Canadian Health Information Management
  Association (CHIMA) and the Canadian College of
  Health Record Administrators (CCHRA) operate as
  one organization, under the acronym CHIMA.

6
Individual Professional Name

• Prior to 1979
• Medical Record Librarian (MRL)
• 1979
• Health Record Administrator (HRA)
• Health Record Technician (HRT)
• 2004
• Health Information Management Professional (HIM
  professional)

7
Academic Changes

• College and degree profession
• 2 year College
• 4 year degree or 2 2
• Upon successful completion from an academic
  institution, recognized by CHIMA, qualify to
  challenge the CHIMA Certification exam

8
Academic Standards

• CHIMA the College through the Council on
  Education (COE) set the learning outcomes for our
  profession
• College curriculum LOHIM Learning Outcomes for
  Health Information Management
• Degree curriculum Guide to Baccalaureate

9
Current Recognized Academic Institutions

• Both public and private institutions may apply to
  CHIMA for recognition
• Colleges
• Douglas College (BC)
• SAIT (AB)
• SIAST (SK)
• Red River (MB)
• George Brown, St. Lawrence, Fleming (ON)
• NBCC (NB)
• CHA (CA)

10
Current Recognized Academic Institutions

• Universities
• UWO Ryerson (ON)
• Expression of interest from 5 additional Colleges
  and 2 Universities

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Certification / Credentialing

• Past
• Exam offered once per year in October with the
  opportunity to rewrite a maximum of three times
• If successful, Credential received
• Certificant C
• Associate A
• Displayed as CCHRA (C) or CCHRA (A)

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Certification / Credentialing

• Present
• Exam changes
• Exam offered twice per year
• July and November as per PC recommendation
• No limit on opportunities to challenge exam
• Graduates from a CHIIMA one or two year
  recognized program can challenge the exam
• If successful, credential received is
• Certificant C, displayed as CCHRA (C )
• Future CCHIM (C)

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Certification/Credentialing

• Both credentials ( C ) and ( A ) are valid and
  continue to be recognized
• Credential can only be used if
• Member in good standing with CHIMA
• Yearly dues paid
• Mandatory Credentialing in place
• Members not in good standing will be struck from
  the Registrar and notified in writing

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Displaying Credentials

• Your academic evolution dictates the order in
  which you display your credentials
• College only
• CCHRA (C ) or
• CCHRA (A)
• University only
• BHA, CCHRA (C )
• College, then University
• CCHRA ( C ), BSc.

15
Domains of Practice

• Board introduced three domains of practice
• Data Quality
• E-HIM
• Privacy
• Education
• Management

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Professional Designation

• Professional Designation is the title awarded to
  the Profession
• e.g. Doctor (MD), Registered Nurse (RN),
• Our professional designation is
• Health Information Management Professional
• Approved abbreviation HIM professional (not
  HIMP)

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Job Titles

• Position titles provided to position functions
  within an organization
• e.g. Coding specialist, Release of Information
  Officer, Data Quality Analyst, Privacy Officer,
  Patient Registration Coordinator, Director of
  Patient Information Services, etc.

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Classification Names

• Names given to classification designations within
  a union agreement
• e.g. Health Record Technical I, HRT II, Health
  Record Administrator I, HRA II
• HIM professional (SK)
• Important to educate Human Resource personnel on
  not naming position/job roles with Classification
  names

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(No Transcript)
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Posting HIM positions

• Coding positions require classification
  specialists (HIM professionals) to perform the
  job function therefore the following would be
  appropriate
• Position Posted Coding/Classification Specialist
• Qualifications required HIM professional

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Appropriate Title Use

• When asked what position you have
• appropriate reply I am an HIM professional
  employed as a Coding Specialist
• Inappropriate reply Im an HRT I

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How to describe your profession

• When someone asks you what you do for a living
• Suggested response
• Im a Health Information Management professional
  involved in the area of
• Data Quality, or
• the Electronic Health Record or
• Privacy.

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National Occupational Code (NOC)

• Our profession fell under a clerical code 1413 -
  Records Management and Filing Clerks
• CHIMA met with HRSDC in September 05
• All reference to coding classification functions
  and CHIMA have been removed
• Temporarily reassigned to 1122 Professional
  Occupations in Business Services to Management

24
Stats Canada Census 2006

• Census Day is May 16, 2006
• Critical to complete the census questions
  appropriately
• Final determination of the HIM professional NOC
  will be made based on census findings

25
(No Transcript)
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Census 2006

• S. 40 For whom did this person work?
• Organization name Regional Health Authority
  name, government, Ministry of Health, Hospital,
  LTC centre, etc.
• S. 41 What kind of business, industry or service
  was this?
• Healthcare, Homecare, Privacy, Department of
  Health, College instructor, University Professor

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Census 2006

• S. 42 What was this persons occupation?
• If you are an HIM professional employed in a HIM
  position then respond as follows
• Health Info. Mgmt. (or HIM) Professional
• If you are a HIM professional employed in a
  health record department but not in a HIM
  position then respond with your job title
• Admitting clerk, medical transcriptionist, health
  record clerk

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Census 2006

• S. 43 In this work, what were this persons main
  activities?
• If you responded to 42 as an HIM professional
  then list HIM functions
• Coding Classification
• Data Analysis or Data Quality
• Privacy
• Director of Health Information Services
• College/University Instructor

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Census 2006

• S. 43 In this work, what were this persons main
  activities?
• If you responded to 42 with a position title and
  perform functions such as filing, quantitative
  analysis, typing, assembly please record them as
  records management and do not break them down
  further

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Mandatory CPE credits

• Confirmed by the Board June 2005
• Process is being developed by COE
• Mandatory CPE is a relevant way to demonstrate
  continuing competence within a profession
• Like other allied health professions
• Web based tool
• Stay tuned.

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Marketing of our Members

• CHIMA is working with The Exclusive Group to
  prepare an overall strategy tools
• In response to member feedback, CHIMA will
  develop a consistent message regarding the need
  to hire certified HIM professionals to perform
  HIM functions
• Credentialed HIM professional Member in good
  standing

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Marketing of our Members

• This message to be marketed to
• Ministries of Health
• Employers including Human Resource Personnel
• Unions
• Vendors
• Revamped CHIMA website

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What can you do?

• Understand the changes
• Be able to articulate the changes
• You can help educate others
• Provincial Associations take a lead in educating
  provincial professionals develop a strategy
  e.g. Alberta Task Force
• Encourage non members to join and renew their
  commitment to the profession
• Complete the May 16, 2006 Census appropriately

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Contact Information

• Kelly Abrams, CCHRA(C), BHA
• Director of Education Professional Practice
• Canadian Health Information Management
  Association
•  
• Central Canada Office
• Regina, SK S4S 3J6
• Phone [phone]
• Email kelly_at_emtechsoftware.com
•  
• Head Office
• 1090 Don Mills Road, Suite 501
• Don Mills, Ontario M3C 3R6 Canada
• Tel [phone]
• Fax [phone]