Milan 2010 - ifhima

IFHRO ERT Minutes V1, Milan 16 Nov 2010 

INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF HEALTH RECORDS 

ORGANIZATIONS (IFHRO) 

EUROPEAN REGIONAL TEAM MEETING 

Held on Thursday 18 th November 2010 11:00 – 13:30 

Meeting Room 3, Minus 1 Level, 

MIC Milano Convention Centre 

Via Gattamelata 5, 

20149 Milano 

Present: 

By Invitation: 

(Part 1 only) 

Apologies: 

Irene Bohlin, Sweden (IB) 

Wybe Dekker, The Netherlands (WD) 

Stuart Green, United Kingdom (SG 

Angelika Haendel, Germany (AH) 

Leonardo La Pietra, Italy (LLP) 

Sara Marchisio, Italy (SM) 

Lorraine Nicholson, United Kingdom (LN) Chair & Rapporteur 

Darley Petersen, Denmark (DP) 

Marcel van der Haagen, The Netherlands (MvdH) 

Sandy Fuller, Chief Operating Officer AHIMA, USA (SF) 

Dani Kolb, Director, AHIMA GSO, Brussels (DK) 

Robert Nelson, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, 

Global Operations 

Luigi Molendini, Italy (LM) 

MINUTE 

ACTION 

1. Welcome and Introductions 

Lorraine Nicholson welcomed AHIMA representatives and all ERT 

members to the 16 th meeting of the IFHRO European Regional 

Team. 

2. Apologies for absence 

Apologies for absence were recorded for LM (see above). 

PART 1 

3. Presentation & Interactive Discussion about AHIMA's Global 

Services Office 

3.1 The presentation by Robert Nelson and Dani Kolb covered the 

following points: 

i. Education and training will be offered internationally using 

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AHIMA‟s educational products and experience. Credentials 

are very important for professionals and for the countries 

that they work in although „value‟ varies around the world. 

ii. GSO has made a long-term commitment to Europe. 

iii. GSO would like to be involved in international standards 

development work. 

iv. The organisation is focussing on HIM and AHIMA to create 

“brand recognition”. 

v. They are targetting non-HIM professionals who have 

influence. 

vi. They want to “leverage the talent” and they can offer free 

resources and infrastructure. 

vii. They would like to see the exchange of best practices. Dani 

Kolb will circulate copies of the draft and final EU report on 

workforce. 

viii. The GSO website will post national HIM events for free. 

ix. They are developing country profiles. 

x. There is a quarterly GSO newsletter sent to over 3,000 

recipients and contributions are invited. 

DK 

3.2 Information was provided about the Roundtable Discussion to 

be held at the GSO Offices in Brussels on 19 th November 2010: 

i. Ilias Iakovidis, DG INFSO - Information Society and Media, 

ICT for Health Unit at the European Commission, has a 

strategic objective to develop a skilled workforce in Europe 

including the HIM workforce. *see notes below for 

background information. 

ii. The meeting will comprise 28 Brussels-based stakeholders 

including Nurses, Managers, representatives from the IT 

sector, the Directorate of Employment and the Directorate of 

Health to discuss the workforce agenda and the way 

forward. 

iii. A Task Group will be established and there is the possibility 

of pilot projects. 

iv. Dani Kolb indicated that she would contact Ilias Iakovidis to 

seek an invitation for a representative of IFHIMA Europe to 

attend a stakeholder conference to be held in Brussels on 

26 th November. This will ensure that IFHIMA Europe is 

invited to future relevant events. 

v. AHIMA GSO is not coming in with solutions but to help 

identify the next steps. 

vi. It is anticipated that the work of the WHO-FIC-IFHRO joint 

collaboration will improve the status and salaries of mortality 

and morbidity coders around the world. 

vii. An “education model” for Europe needs to be developed. 

viii. Volunteers to help GSO with the work going forward would 

be welcome. 

DK - DONE 

*NOTES: 

The European Social Fund (ESF) was set up to improve employment 

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opportunities in the European Union and so help raise standards of living. 

It aims to help people fulfil their potential by giving them better skills and 

better job prospects. As one of the EU's Structural Funds, ESF seeks to 

reduce differences in prosperity across the EU and enhance economic and 

social cohesion. So although ESF funding is spread across the EU, most 

money goes to those countries and regions where economic development 

is less advanced. The other main Structural Fund is the European 

Regional Development Fund which invests in projects to improve 

innovation, the environment and infrastructure. 

The European Regional Development Fund was set up 1975 to 

stimulate economic development in the least prosperous regions of the 

European Union (EU). 

The European Social fund is a key part of the Europe 2020 strategy for 

jobs and smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. It supports the EU's goal 

of increasing employment by giving unemployed and disadvantaged 

people the training and support they need to enter jobs. ESF also equips 

the workforce with the skills needed by business in a competitive global 

economy. 

“EUROPE 2020 A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth”. 

One of the targets is "An agenda for new skills and jobs" to modernise 

labour markets and empower people by developing their of skills 

throughout the lifecycle with a view to increase labour participation and 

better match labour supply and demand, including through labour mobility”. 

4. Next Steps for both organisations 

i. LN and AH will draw up a list of recommendations from 

IFHIMA Europe and send it by e-mail to Robert Nelson and 

Dani Kolb by close of business on 18 th November. 

ii. Robert Nelson and Dani Kolb will table the recommendations 

at the Roundtable Discussion in Brussels on 19 th November 

and will provide feedback to IFHIMA Europe. 

iii. Dani Kolb will circulate copies of the presentations and the 

report on the event to IFHIMA Europe. 

iv. Use the outputs of the WHO-FIC-IFHRO joint collaboration 

to improve the status and salaries of mortality and morbidity 

coders around the world. 

LN/AH – DONE 

RN/DK 

DK 

IFHRO/GSO 

PART 2 

5. A new name – “IFHIMA Europe” 

In view of the change of name for IFHRO to IFHIMA International 

Federation of Health Information Management Associations) the 

European Regional Team agreed that the Team will now be 

renamed IFHIMA Europe. 

6. Future Chairmanship of IFHIMA Europe 

LN reminded members that she had chaired the Team for the last 

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five years and asked if a new Chair should be elected. Team 

members asked LN to continue as Chair and she agreed but 

requested that this should be revisited in three years time. 

7. Private Discussion on the Presentation by Robert Nelson & 

Dani Kolb 

The discussion covered the following points: 

i. How can the GSO help IFHIMA? 

ii. IFHIMA should use the connection to “grow the profession”. 

iii. There is a need to define HIM requirements for Europe i.e. 

workforce, education (from foundation level upwards) to help 

us determine the direction of travel. Could this be done 

collaboratively? 

iv. Education should be the responsibility of national 

associations – this will allow the profession to grow at both 

national and regional levels. 

v. Italy needs HIM professionals to work in both hospitals and 

ambulatory care settings. 

8. IFHIMA Europe Poster 

i. The existing IFHRO ERT Poster was reviewed and changes 

and updates agreed. DP will produce a revised poster and 

circulate it to members. 

DP 

9. Next steps 

i. Produce baseline Information on what is happening in each 

country and composition of the HIM workforce (e.g. at GP 

surgeries, in hospitals, in the community, clinical coding) 

ii. Undertake a pilot study in Italy and publish the findings in the 

Italian Hospital Journal and to inform discussions on 

European credentialling including credentials for Clinical 

Coders 

iii. Develop a strategy for IFHIMA Europe for the next three 

years including a work plan and new activities 

iv. Establish a connection to IFHIMA Europe from the IFHIMA 

Home Page 

10. Any other business 

ALL LN TO 

COORDINATE 

SM TO 

COORDINATE 

ALL FINALISE AT 

NEXT FACE TO 

FACE MEETING 

LN TO ASK 

MARGARET 

SKURKA 

i. There was no urgent business. 

11. Date, time and place of the next IFHIMA Europe meeting 

The next IFHIMA Europe meeting will be held in Malaga, Spain 

during the SEDOM national conference (4 th – 6 th June 2011) at a 

date, time and location to be advised. 

LN 

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LN 3 rd December 2010 

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Milan 2010 - ifhima

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