Staffing to volume in integrated delivery networks

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Administration
• Health Informatics
• Workforce Management

Background:

• Traditional universal staffing standards for Health Information Management (HIM) departments are becoming obsolete.
• The absence of updated, universally accepted standards presents challenges for HIM practitioners.
• The dynamic nature of the modern healthcare workplace necessitates adaptive staffing strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide a practical methodology for HIM practitioners to establish workable staffing levels.
• To demonstrate how benchmarking can be applied to HIM staff within integrated delivery networks.
• To address the challenge of maintaining adequate HIM staffing in the absence of clear industry standards.

Main Methods:

• The study proposes a detailed methodology for benchmarking HIM staff.
• The methodology focuses on application within integrated delivery networks (IDNs).
• It involves analyzing current HIM roles and responsibilities against comparable data.

Main Results:

• Benchmarking allows for the creation of data-driven, workable staff models.
• This methodology enables HIM departments to justify staffing levels based on operational needs and industry comparisons.
• Successful application within IDNs was demonstrated.

Conclusions:

• A detailed benchmarking methodology offers a viable solution for HIM staffing challenges.
• HIM practitioners can effectively manage staff by adapting to new measurement techniques.
• This approach supports operational efficiency and resource allocation in healthcare organizations.