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As I sit here in my office
on a Monday morning in St. Louis, I am being treated to a variety of
weather. My morning started with blue skies and sunshine. But, just a
short half-hour later it is blizzard conditions with accumulating snow. I
go to my morning class worried about what will occur while I am away. I
came back to blue skies, sunshine and no evidence of snow! That was all
before lunch!
Just like the changing
weather we are all experiencing this season, healthcare is changing just as
fast. We need to keep current with what is happening and make it a daily
priority to check on the “conditions”. One great way to do this is becoming
a member of the communities of practice (CoP) through AHIMA.
Check it out.
Registration for the
MHIMA
Annual Meeting is now open. I hope to see many of you in St. Charles.
Marsha Dolan and her team are preparing a wonderful agenda for us. We will
also have opportunities to spend time together just having fun.
Have a wonderful week!
Julie Wolter, MA, RHIA
President, MHIMA
ps: I would like to send a
special “hello” to my students. They are new members of the Association.
Welcome to them and to all students. We are excited to have you as members
and future HIM professionals.
Online registration for the 2008 Annual
Meeting is now available.
Click
here to register.
Topics include Legal EHR, POA, Advanced ICD-9-CM Coding,
Auditing and compliance issues facing CPT, Implementation of an EHR for
small to mid-sized hospitals, Updates in government and advocacy
challenge, How to negotiate for off shore transcription, What does your
GPS have to do with your PHR, and MUCH more!
 The
President’s fiscal year 2009 budget proposes a $6 million increase for the
Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC)
to $66 million. In addition, the President has proposed $40.3 million to
begin converting to ICD-10 and President has proposed additional health
information technology funding for the Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality ($45 million) and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning
and Evaluation ($3 million). The President’s budget proposal outlines
several key roles for ONC:
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supporting efforts to assure appropriate federal privacy
and security protections for electronic health information and to
support state consensus efforts to address patient protections
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transitioning the American Health Information Community
(AHIC) to a public-private partnership to serve as the successor to AHIC
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standards development and implementation for the federal
government and the private sector
-
developing a technical architecture to advance adoption
of health information technology
For a copy of the President’s budget in brief, visit
www.hhs.gov.
In a recent report, “Driving for Quality in Long-Term Care:
A Board of Directors Dashboard,” the Office of the Inspector General and the
Health Care Compliance Association present the challenges and opportunities
for the board of directors of long term care organizations. The roundtable
report is available at
http://www.hcca-info.org/staticcontent/07OIGRoundtableReport.pdf
The ACE Challenge
mobilizes a network of experts and change agents. It identifies, prepares,
engages, mentors, and recognizes those working to transform HIM practice.
ACE members match their skills and interests
with volunteer and career-building opportunities. They form a preferred pool
of experts and a network of peers transforming HIM. It is through mentoring,
writing, speaking, and testifying for AHIMA and the Component State
Associations that ACE members share their e-HIM expertise and accelerate
change. ACE members attain personal recognition and acknowledgment by peers,
employers, and the healthcare industry.
Being a member of the Action Community means
having a commitment to volunteering. The opportunities include mentoring
members, speaking at CSA meetings, writing for AHIMA, and/or testifying to
legislators. All are optional, although are highly encouraged activities
for members of ACE for at least two years.
For further information see:
http://www.ahima.org/ace/
 The
2008 Health Information Privacy and Security Week will be held April 13
through 19.
"CONFIDENTIAL IS
ESSENTIAL—Protect Health Information” is the theme for Health Information
Privacy and Security Week 2008. This invaluable awareness event, held April
13 through 19, assures our communities that the industry takes extraordinary
measures to put health information in the right hands and keep it there.
It is a positive reminder of the importance every healthcare professional
should place in this crucial aspect of medicine. A message that resonates
throughout the nation’s facilities.
Please visit AHIMA’s website (http://www.ahima.org/hipsweek/)
for more information and several resources to make this week of recognition
a wonderful success.
If you know someone who wants to make a difference in our
state organization, please go to the website and
nominate them! Or better yet, nominate yourself! Don't think you are
qualified? See the Call for Nominations page for the qualifications of each
position. The Nominations Committee would like to give you a terrific ballot
of nominees - please submit as soon as possible!
Online Call for Nomination Form
Deadline has been extended to March 1st!
 Dear
HIM Professional,
MHIMA
would like to honor the excellence, dedication and service of professionals
whose efforts better the Health Information Management field in the state of
Missouri.
Think of
people who have made an impact on your HIM career. What better time than
NOW to honor extraordinary colleagues, educators, students, volunteers, and
boosters with a nomination to the state recognition they deserve.
The 2008 Award
categories are:
-
Distinguished Service Award: This is MHIMA’s highest
honor. It is awarded to an individual whose record of contributions to
the HIM field over many years is truly exceptional.
-
Rising Star: This award honors a gifted new
professional (practicing in the HIM field for less then 3 years)
who embodies great hope as we look to the future of the HIM profession.
-
Outstanding HIM Educator: This award honors those who
demonstrate excellence in preparing the next generation of professionals
for their HIM careers.
-
Outstanding HIM Student: This award recognizes the best
of the new talent being trained in our 6 HIT/HIA programs in the state.
-
Outstanding MHIMA Booster: This award recognizes a
vendor that has shown continued support of MHIMA and the HIM profession.
-
Outstanding MHIMA Volunteer: This award recognizes an
individual that has devoted extraordinary time to the HIM profession
through volunteering at the state and local levels in Missouri.
No one can
win unless they are nominated. So, please take the time to show your
appreciation for contributions made by a remarkable individual by nominating
someone for a 2008 MHIMA Award. Forms can be found on the MHIMA web site –
www.mohima.org/MHIMAAwards.html
Thank you,
Jeff McGraw,
RHIT
Project Team Leader
2008 MHIMA Awards Committee
 The
FORE Merit Scholarship Program enables many students to finish their
education in HIM or to continue in graduate studies each year. In 2007, 95
scholarships were awarded to students all over the country, amounting to
$108,500. Scholarships range from $1,000 to $5,000. FORE will accept
applications for 2008 Merit Scholarship until April 25.
Go to the FORE Web
site,
http://www.ahima.org/fore/student/undergrad.asp, for an application.
Barbara Beckett, RHIT was selected to receive the Shooting
STAR award for September by the MHIMA Board. Congratulations Barbara!
If you are making a gift in honor of a
friend or colleague in HIM, a mentor, a co-worker, or a classmate, don't
forget to request your FORE Shooting Star pin when you make a gift. The gold
lapel pin is for you to present to your honoree in recognition of all they
contribute to the HIM profession. Each Shooting Star pin is $25 and can be
mailed directly to you to present to your honoree or (at your request) FORE
can mail it to the individual on your behalf.
Click here for more information.
The 2006 Legal Manual for Management of Health Information in Missouri is
available for purchase. Please
click here
for more information.
Have a best practice in HIM Department management or coding
that you’d like to share with your colleagues?
Want a chance to win a MHIMA or AHIMA gift
certificate to be used toward a continuing education project or purchase of
HIM week products?
Through a grant funded by First Class
Solutions, the Innovation in Current HIM Practice Awards have been
developed. The Awards program is intended to facilitate the exchange of
ideas and solutions that have a positive impact on our practices, the
healthcare systems we work in and the patients we serve and to recognize
those innovative, proven practices applied to the traditional paper-based
and transitional settings.
Please
click
here for an application and more information.
What: 2009 Annual Meeting
When: April 29, 30 and May 1, 2009
Where:
Lodge of Four Seasons in Lake of the Ozarks,
MO
The Lodge of Four Seasons is located on Lake of the
Ozarks in Lake Ozark, Missouri, 2 ½ hours from both St. Louis and Kansas
City, and 90 minutes from Springfield. The Lodge offers exceptional Lake
views, a 54 hole championship golf course, and a full-service spa. It is
also home to the lake's largest marina featuring pontoon boats, wave
runners, parasailing, fishing, tubing and much more.
Hope to see you there!
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