Overcoming historical and organizational legacies: AHIMA poises to lead

Considering leadership as both an individual and an aggregate characteristic, the article examines the leadership potential for members of the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and for AHIMA as a professional organization within the field of health information management. AHIMA and its members are uniquely suited for leadership within this occupational field. The long association with paper records and a hospital maintenance function, however, plus the predominance of women within the field result in organizational features and political factors that could block leadership development.