Health information technology (HIT) is one of the elements that are key to streamlining the process of healthcare provision to harness cost and improve quality. HIT forms the basis for medicine that is evidenced-based and more patient-centered by ensuring real-time availability of information that is of high quality. According to the committee on professional development of AHIMA, it is the responsibility of HIM professionals to improve the healthcare quality by making sure that the information available is the best for any healthcare decision-making (Zeng, Reynolds andSharp, 2009). These professionals are generally the custodians and business managers of data and information in healthcare.

The setting in which I am working is a hospital where I work in the registry department. My role in registry entails processing and maintaining medical records of the hospital and managing any information that is submitted by patients, nurses, doctors, and healthcare specialists. Such documents include medical histories, patient forms and test results where I analyze the information to ensure that it is accurate and correct. In addition, it is also my responsibility to assess health records and claims of insurance companies and use classification software to give clinical codes that are appropriate for data examination and compensation. Managing and updating data for clinical databases and implementing an effective electronic health record system is another role that my job entails (Layman, 2009). Besides, it is my responsibility to ensure that I comply with laws and regulations regarding confidentiality.

Some of the ethical aspects that I should be familiar with in my capacity include privacy and confidentiality where patients have a right to have their information kept without being disclosed to others. Information should only be released with permission from the patient or when allowed by law. When the patient is not in the capacity to do so, the decision to share the patient’s information can be made by the legal guardian of the patient or an authorized representative. Another ethical aspect is security breaches which may threaten the privacy of the patient. System implementation is another ethical aspect whose challenges may result in providers who are frustrated, wasted resources, patient safety issues and loss of confidence by patients.Besides, data inaccuracies is another ethical aspect that I need to be familiar with (Ozair et al., 2015). Inaccuracy in data is crucial as it may increase patients’ risks and liability for organizations and clinicians.

Structure of the RHIT Exam

The domains that are tested in the RHIT exam are seven, which include; Health Data Management, Health statistics, Biomedical research and quality management, health services organization and delivery, Information technology and systems, organizational resources, the legal domain, and the revenue cycle domain. The exam takes three and a half hours and consists of 150 multiple-choice questions with 130 scored questions and 20 pre-test questions that are meant for research. The questions are based on the domains, subdomains, and tasks on the AHIMA domains which are required to be taught in the CAHIIM program(Leroy and Ruth). The exam tests recall, application and analysis.

On the material exam day, one is required to take two appropriate forms of identification, a current picture identification with one’s signature and a second identification form with a signature. An authorization test ATT from the Prometric must also be provided. A pencil and a scratch paper will be presented which are turned in at the exam completion. Calculators and codebooks should not be brought to the examination room. Registration for the exam is done online and involves visiting the AHIMA website and download the application form. One must have an associate degree level of HIM program accredited by CAHIIM or graduated from a HIM program or be a student in CAHIIM enrolled in the final term of study. The tips to improve the test-taking skills include answering the questions that I know first, get the central idea of each item, anticipate the answer and check if it is among the options, read all choices since they can give a clue to the correct answer, watch out for distracters and use elimination techniques.

Strength and Weaknesses in the RHIT Domains

One area of strength is in the domain of data analysis and management. Within the domain, I do very well when it comes to maintaining filing and health records retrieval systems. I have come up with a very efficient system to enable easy retrieval of patients’ records. The system allows recovery of the documents using any available patient information such as name or even the last date of visit. The weakness I have is in the domain of compliance/ biomedical research and quality management where I am not able to implement internal and external guidelines of audit well. I also have a weakness in participating in vendor selection in the domain of health services organization and delivery.

I plan to improve the weaknesses in these domains by taking up short courses in the specific areas in the evening after work. In auditing, I can also learn through liaising with a re-known auditing farm. I will also read books on auditing after work to improve my knowledge and skills. I also need to identify areas that require auditing within my department so that I can review them more often. Regarding vendor selection, I need to review various hardware and software to be informed about the current and the best ones including the cost. These I can quickly review from the internet and look at multiple firms. The review will enable me to be involved in the process of selection of vendors for various health information system requirements within the hospital.

References

Layman E., (2009). Research and Policy Model for Health Informatics and Information     Management. Perspect Health InfManag. 2009; 6 (Summer): 1g. Published online 2009      Sep 16.

Leroy & Ruth. Preparation Guide for the RHIA and RHIT Certification Examinations. 2^nd edition. PRG Publishing Inc.

Ozair F. F., Jamshed N., Sharma A. &Aggarwal P., (2015). Ethical issues in electronic health        records: A general overview.PerspectClin Res. 2015 Apr-Jun; 6(2): 73–76.        doi: 10.4103/2229-3485.153997

Zeng X., Reynolds R.&Sharp M., (2009). Redefining the Roles of Health Information         Management Professionals in Health Information Technology.Perspect Health Inf          Manag. 2009; 6 (Summer): 1f. Published online 2009 Sep 16.

Do you need high quality Custom Essay Writing Services?