What is HIM?

Health information management (HIM) is the practice of acquiring, analyzing, and protecting digital and traditional medical information vital to providing quality patient care. It is a combination of business, science, and information technology.
 
Health information (HI) professionals are highly trained in the latest information management technology applications and understand the workflow in any healthcare provider organization from large hospital systems to the private physician practice. They are vital to the daily operations management of health information and electronic health records (EHRs). They ensure a patient’s health information and records are complete, accurate, and protected.
 
HI professionals have an extraordinary impact. They are the link between clinicians, administrators, technology designers, operations, and information technology professionals.
 
These professionals affect the quality of patient information and patient care at every touch point ​in the healthcare delivery cycle. HI professionals work on the classification of diseases and treatments to ensure they are standardized for clinical, financial, and legal uses in healthcare. HI professionals care for patients by caring for their medical data and are responsible for the quality, integrity, security, and protection of patients’ health information.
 
HI professionals perform diverse roles in healthcare and are employed in a wide variety of work settings including hospitals, physician offices, ambulatory care facilities, managed care facilities, long-term care facilities, consulting firms, information system vendors, colleges and universities, insurance providers, pharmaceutical companies, rehabilitation centers, and other healthcare-related venues.

Health Information Management in Indiana – Remembering Our Legacy

The Health Information Management profession has a long and rich history in Indiana. Many changes have occurred over the past 90 years and Indiana has led the way. From the first state university Medical Records Program in the U.S. to the creation of strong educational programs to meet the need of qualified health information professionals. Indiana has provided strong leadership at both state and national levels.
 
Read the full story about HIM in Indiana - Remembering Our Legacy.