It has been quite a year in the privacy world, hasn't it? The OCR website has reported 500 breaches of unsecured PHI affecting 500 or more individuals, totaling more than 12 million patients. There has been an increase in HIPAA-related criminal sentences involving jail time. And private lives are no longer private.
How quickly time flies! As 2012 has now come to an end, it seems to be a good time to reflect on some of the challenging standards hospitals faced this year.
It's December, the end of a long 2012 for you and your HIM staff. Whether you have 50 coders or five, you may be putting the final touches on an end-of-the-year celebration.
As an HIM professional, you have long managed the quality and integrity of the health record. You know all components inside and out, aid in the design of forms to accurately and completely capture the necessary information, and point out potential data discrepancies in the record prior to finalization.
The monetary reward offered through the second stage of the Medicare and Medicaid incentive program shouldn't be the only reason HIM professionals embrace the concept of being "meaningful users" of certified EHR technology (CEHRT).
