Happy HIP Week: Reliable Heal Information, Responsible Care by Karen Snyder

During this, the 26th annual Health Information Professionals (HIP) Week, the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) has chosen to honor and celebrate their profession, by emphasizing this year's theme, Reliable Information, Responsible Care.

Today, it is all too common to hear about those things that aren't trustworthy: the New York Fed, your neighbor's pit bull, Hillary Clinton (at least according to Senator Rand Paul) and gasp .Wikipedia.

With the emergence of health information governance as a key priority for healthcare organizations, never has information, and more importantly, the integrity of that information been so critical. And, if you review your organization's strategic plan, you're likely to find that every goal and priority relies heavily on the availability and trustworthiness of information.

Reliable and trustworthy information is a necessary foundation to any Information Governance (IG) program and enterprise IG treats information as a strategic asset, just like your buildings, or staff, research findings or your organization's reputation. Like these other assets, information has a strategic and operational value - it's no longer simply a derivative of the work process.

Once you've recognized the importance of information and taken steps to address the challenges associated with data quality, you'll be well positioned to enable more effective patient care decisions that optimize health outcomes, improve organizational performance, reduce risk and ensure compliance and lower your costs.

And, who better to be the keepers of this trusted information than Health Information Management professionals? As you embark on this journey to governance, HIM professionals should be applauded for delivering accurate information when and where it is needed - while maintaining the highest standards of data integrity, confidentiality, and security. Your role is essential as we implement Electronic Medical Records, maintain the privacy and security of patient information, and redesign workflows. The only way we can transform healthcare is with accurate information. Many thanks to the HIM professionals and the leadership of AHIMA for blazing the path to more reliable information and its optimized use, not only during HIP Week, but every day.

Follow @IronMtnHealth on Twitter for HIP Week tweets and general information for HIM professionals.

LINK:	http://blogs.ironmountain.com/2015/industry/healthcare-information-man...
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