Irina Kireeva

Running head: DISCUSSION: HISTORY OF HEALTH INFORMATICS Discussion: History of Health Informatics Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation 1 DISCUSSION: HISTORY OF HEALTH INFORMATICS 2 Discussion: History of Health Informatics Healthcare information management has passed a long way from the first records made by healthcare professionals to the modernized information technologies which make it possible to access, process, or maintain large volumes of data, providing a high quality of healthcare services. Where has healthcare information management been historically? The history of medical information management goes back to 1928 when the Association of Record Librarians of North America was established. The purpose of this organization was to raise the standards of clinical records in hospitals and other healthcare facilities (Sheingold & Hahn, 2014). In 1938, it was named as American Association of Medical Record Librarians which served to prepare medical record specialists. Eventually, the organization's name was transformed into the American Health Information Management Association. How has the introduction of technology dramatically changed the landscape? The introduction of technology has caused drastic changes in health information management departments, processes, and data management. The electronic health record, which replaced handwritten records, has made it easy to store, maintain, and access all of the patient's medical information. Other accompanying technologies such as patient portals allow patients to monitor their process of treatment and interact with the doctor more easily. The information exchange technology helps doctors to access a patient's medical history electronically, enhancing the speed and quality of patient care ("PBS- Healthcare Crisis: Manage care," n.d.). A computerassisted coding system improves document physician and outpatient-based services and facilitates the process of interaction between healthcare organizations and insurance companies. DISCUSSION: HISTORY OF HEALTH INFORMATICS 3 How has the introduction of technology increased the need for and importance of proper management? The implementation of such technologies has caused considerable changes in health information management departments, processes, and data management, making the profession completely different and requiring highly qualified personnel. Moreover, the technology makes the service more efficient through monitoring the real extent of HIM professionals' impact on health management and patient care. Modernization entails changes in HIM professionals' roles, requiring them to obtain relevant skills to successfully carry out their duties. A healthcare specialist now should be able to manage health data and have a detailed understanding of the information exchange, privacy and security processes. Conclusion Healthcare information management has changed greatly over time. The new technologies make the interaction between a patient and a doctor easier and facilitate data collection, storage, and processing. The implementation of modern technologies not only modified the healthcare service itself but also required the medical staff to be more competent and well-trained for their job to be done. DISCUSSION: HISTORY OF HEALTH INFORMATICS References HHS Historical Highlights. (2017, February 10). Retrieved from https://www.hhs.gov/about/historical-highlights/index.html PBS- Healthcare Crisis: Healthcare Timeline. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/healthcarecrisis/history.htm PBS- Healthcare Crisis: Manage care. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/healthcarecrisis/managedcare.html Sheingold, B. H., & Hahn, J. A. (2014). The history of healthcare quality: The first 100 years-. International Journal of Africa Nursing Sciences, 1, 18-22. doi:10.1016/j.ijans- 4