Health information administrators vital to health care
by Jennifer Hilliard
As the need for health professionals increases and the number of patients grows, it’s easy to forget about the people behind the scenes in health care. In fact, most people rarely think of health information administrators as health care workers.
But health care wouldn’t be possible without them, said Dr. Carol Campbell, chair of the MCG Department of Health Informatics.
“The role of health information professionals has changed over the years,” said Dr. Campbell, “from health librarians and record-keepers to stewards and advocates for patients and caregivers.”
Their roles include managing and streamlining patient records and computer systems, coding medical records, easing the billing process and acting as systems managers and technology consultants.
Their role has evolved even more since President Bush launched a federal electronic health initiative in 2004. The initiative aims for digital health records for most Americans by 2014.
“The goal is to make information available at the point of care,” Dr. Campbell said. Proper management of health information can help patients make better health decisions, she noted.
For instance, a patient with several different doctors will have one electronic record accessible to all of his health care providers.
“By using universal terms and language, it’s easier to compare and interpret data,” Dr. Campbell said. “That has a major impact on lowering the rate of medical errors.”
Privacy laws, such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, make the role of a health information manager that much more important.
“The work of a health information manager is information and knowledge work,” she said. “It’s about making knowledge and information more accessible and more usable for patients and caregivers.”
For more information about MCG’s Health Informatics program, call ext. 1-3436.