Nosology Work: One Step beyond the Medical Record Department

Abstract

This article discusses the role of the nosologist/health information management (HIM) professional in a venue one step beyond the hospital's medical record department. It provides a glimpse of the role of the HIM professional at a statistical government agency, the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) in the United States, and focuses primarily on the collaborative work that is performed by the HIM professional at NCHS. The challenges presented in survey coding will be discussed, while practical examples of how we have chosen to improve the data collection, data processing and data reporting processes will also be addressed.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

American Health Information Management Association (2004). Growth and income. Available at: <atwww.AHIMA.org>.

National Center for Health Statistics (n.d. a). About NCHS. Available at: <www.cdc.gov/nchs/about.htm>.

National Center for Health Statistics (n.d. b). National Health Care Survey. Available at: <www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhcs.htm>.

National Center for Health Statistics (n.d. c). Classifications of diseases and functioning & disability. Available at: <www.cdc.gov/nchs/icd9.htm>.

National Center for Health Statistics (n.d. d). ICD-9-CM Coordination and Maintenance Committee. Available at: <www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/otheract/icd9/maint/maint.htm>.

Schneider

Appleton

McLemore

(1979). A reason for visit classification for ambulatory care. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital and Health Statistics 2(78).