American Health Information Management Association. Position statement. Issue: quality management and improvement in healthcare reform.
Healthcare providers have long been proponents of high quality, cost-efficient patient care services. The healthcare reform plan proposed by President Clinton acknowledges these long-standing priorities through the formation of a nationwide healthcare Quality Management Program. Implementation of an effective Quality Management process in all sectors of healthcare services will require dedication and innovation from all members of the healthcare team, including health information management professionals. Providers must accept responsibility for collecting reasonable data to develop reliable and statistically valid quality and performance measures. Healthcare consumers must shoulder the responsibility of interpreting the data accurately and using it responsibly. The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and the members of its Quality Assurance Section are committed to working with applicable state and federal agencies, professional associations, and accrediting agencies to achieve the quality and performance measurement objectives of healthcare reform. Through these alliances, AHIMA and the Quality Assurance Section can assist the nation's healthcare providers, health plans, health alliances, and consumers in making sound judgments about quality and cost.
D008499:Medical Records / Q000592:standards*; D016134:Organizational Policy; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D012952:Societies; D014481:United States