Big News for IG at Annual Convention

By Rita Bowen, MA, RHIA, CHPS, SSGB

In 2015, AHIMA has shifted their focusing to the need to move information governance (IG) from the discussion phase to the action phase. At this year’s Privacy and Security Institute, several speakers discussed the need for privacy and security experts to participate in the IG conversations that are occurring within their organizations. This Tuesday, at AHIMA’s Annual Convention and Exhibit, Deborah Green, MBA, RHIA, AHIMA’s executive vice president and chief innovation and global services officer, announced that AHIMA will be providing actionable tools such as IG PulseRate^TM, IG HealthRate^TM, and IG Advisors^TM.

Intrigued, I visited AHIMA’s IG booth in the Exhibit Hall and completed the IG PulseRate assessment. An easy and straightforward process, this seems like a tool that will help AHIMA members raise awareness and begin the IG journey with their organizations. The ability for various individuals within an organization to complete the IG PulseRate assessment can facilitate the convergence of thought leaders as to the status and/or understanding of IG in the organization. Green’s announcement at the General Session was followed by a presentation from futurist Joe Flower, author of Healthcare Beyond Reform, who painted the complete portrait of the needs for reform in healthcare today. Reform that can be supported by the utilization of information governance principles.

The focus on information bringing value to the customer is exciting. As Steven J. Stack, MD, of the American Medical Association stated during the Luminary Healthcare Panel in Tuesday’s General Session, healthcare providers and organizations should be using the patient as the North Star for all our actions. IG efforts could even help restore the joy to the practice of medicine that some feel it has lost.

HIM professionals are in a prime position to be the conveners of IG. It’s time to make it happen.

Rita Bowen (Rita.Bowen@HealthPort.com) is senior vice president of HIM and privacy officer at HealthPort.