Better late than never. This is what some healthcare professionals are likely saying about the delayed release of the fiscal year (FY) 2014 OIG Work Plan, which was due to be released in fall 2013 but did not make an appearance until January 2014.
The Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 was recently signed into law, and what might seem on the surface like a straightforward attempt to prevent cuts to Medicare physician rates is actually more than meets the eye.
HIM professionals must be flexible and willing to adapt to the ever-changing healthcare environment. Most people in HIM departments across the nation are focused on the emergence of EHR technology and what will happen with ICD-10, and rightly so. But the key to developing the policies and procedures that will help make any HIM initiative successful is health information governance.
As healthcare continues to evolve, addressing the effect changes may have on the healthcare landscape and establishing goals for the future is important.
The HIPAA Security Rule preamble reinforces training "criticality" and restates the standard, "We require training of the workforce as reasonable and appropriate to carry out their functions in the facility." Security training is essential.
The term "data rich and information poor" has been used to describe EMRs. Patient records are often packed with data, but that data is less than helpful if it is difficult to find at a moment's notice.
The ICD-10 implementation deadline is just around the corner, so hospitals must carefully assess their systems and processes to ensure things go smoothly on and after October 1.
