IFHIMA Global News Issue No. 7, April 2011

Global Newsformerly known as IFHROInternational Federation of Health Information Management AssociationsA Non-Governmental Organization in official relations with the World Health Organization (WHO)The Link for Health Records/Information Management Around the WorldSpecial Congress Issue of the XVI IFHRO Congress ofInternational Federation of Health Record Organizations (IFHRO)November 15-19, Milan ItalyIFHIMA President’s Message 3Report of Immediate Past President of IFHRO/IFHIMA 4Congress reports:- Report Dr. Leonardo La Pietra, president of AIDOS 7- Lorraine Nicholson: Meeting of National IFHRO Directors,Deputy Directors and Associate Members 9- National and Alternate IFHRO Directors attending the Meeting ofNational IFHRO Directors, Deputy Directors and Associate Members 11- Lorraine Nicholson: The 16 th IFHRO General Assembly 12- IFHIMA Executive Committee 2010-2013 14Personal congress impressions around the world:- Australia: Josephine Raw, Cameron Barnes & Phyllis Watson 16- Kingdom of Tonga: Sione Vaioleti Hufanga 20- Indonesia: Elise Garmelia 21- Qatar: Francis Paul Kirubagaran 23- Oman: George Kennedy 24- Spain: Carolina Conejo 26- Denmark: Darley Petersen 27- UK: Stuart Green 29- The Netherlands: Wybe Dekker & Marcel van der Haagen 33- Germany: Ulrich Wirth, Markus Stein & Ulli Hoffmann 34- USA: Carol Lewis & Rita Bowen 36- Jamaica: Veronica Miller-Richards 38u

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Miscellaneous:Meeting with Mr. Sooneeraz Monohur, chief Health Records Officer,Ministry of Health and Quality of Life, Port Louis, Mauritius 44Report of the Meeting of IFHIMA Europe (former European Regional Team) 45Host of the 17 th IFHIMA Congress:- Montréal, Québec, Canada: May 13-15, 2013 46Further photo impressions of the Milan congress 48Publishing information 5062

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011IFHIMA President’s MessageFebruary 2011Margaret Skurka,, MS, RHIA, CCS, FAHIMAPresident of IFHIMAEmail: mskurk@iun.eduHello to all of you for this issue of theGLOBAL NEWS — my first as yourPresident! It has been nonstop activity forthe past two months since many of uswere together in Milan. I’m excited aboutthe progress we have made already andlook forward to an energetic few yearsuntil we are together again in May 2013 inMontreal. Some of the highlights of thepast 2 months:Name Change: Lorraine Nicholson spearheadedthe distribution of the email ballotto the General Assembly members afterthe Milan Congress, and the vote waspositive for the Constitution changes andthe name change of the organization toIFHIMA -- The International Federation ofHealth Information Management Associations.This terminology is consistent with the nowworldwide use of HIM for our profession.New Web Site: Go to www.ifhima.org. Ournew web site is now operational. Over thenext few weeks we will continually beadding new content, beginning lateJanuary. Currently, going to either thenew web site or the old one, will lead youto the same place. We are updating allpages and will include an updatedcalendar, reports from our ExecutiveBoard members for the respective regions,and updated strategic initiatives for thenext 3 years.Also, BIG NEWS is that the AHIMA hasarranged for payment of your dues via acredit card on the web site. Our membershave asked for this for a long time and it isnow here. Also, once you pay your dues,you will receive a confirmation that youshould print out, and it is designed toserve as your membership card as well.We’ve been working on this for some timeand are happy it is now a reality.Our new board members are very active inthe various Regions of the world that theyrepresent. Please read their reports on theweb site for the most current information.There is much activity in Europe at present.Please review Lorraine Nicholson’sreport for all the excellent detail of variousresearch projects.We continue our work with the WHO-FICJoint Collaboration and I will be attendingthe spring meeting of this group inBudapest, Hungary in late March. Therelease of the ICD-10 training module online will help advance ICD-10 codingtraining for mortality, worldwide. Also, anew Education Module for our web site onthe EHR is under development and willhopefully be posted over the summer.Your IFHIMA board will meet face to face forthe 2011 meeting in conjunction with theSpanish Congress in Malaga, Spain in earlyJune of 2011. We will only have one face toface meeting after that, in 2012, before it istime for the next Congress in 2013.Our annual budget is a small one and wewill continue to search for corporate sponsorsto help us further our cause. I hope tocontact our volunteers soon and engagethose of you that volunteered in Milan tohelp our work over the next 2 ½ years.I welcome comments from all of you. Emailme and I promise a response mskurk@iun.edu.Also, all of our dedicated board has theiremails on our web site—so check in withyour representative at any time.The best to all of you for the next monthsin your work in the HIM profession.Warm regards,Margaret SkurkaPresident3

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Report ofImmediate Past Presidentof IFHIMANovember - January 2011Governmental Organisation in officialrelations with WHO.• I drafted and circulated notes of theAHAIP Workshop to Executive Boardmembers and identified areas for potentialprojects.• I participated in telephone conferenceabout the AHAIP initiative with MargaretSkurka, Angelika Haendel, Robert Nelsonon 17th December and I drafted andcirculated notes of the call to ExecutiveBoard members.Lorraine Nicholson,Immediate Past PresidentEmail: l.nicholson@zen.co.ukPlease find below a summary of myactivities since the last meeting of theIFHIMA Executive Board in Milan on 17thNovember 2010.• I conducted e-mail ballot of National Directorspresent at the General Assemblyon 15th November 2010 regarding thechanges to the IFHIMA constitution. Thisinvolved reviewing and agreeing theformat of the ballot paper with Carol Lewis,Phyllis Watson and Ulli Hoffman(Scrutineers for the ballot), collating thevotes cast, circulating the result of theballot and reviewing and agreeing thefinal version of revised constitution.• I circulated information about the conferencecall system to new members ofIFHIMA Executive Board.• I provided existing contact information inAfrica and Eastern Mediterranean to JoonHong, the new Regional Director forAfrica and the Eastern Mediterranean.• I attended the European CommissionStakeholder Workshop on Active andHealthy Ageing Innovation Partnership(AHAIP) in Brussels on 26th November2010 to represent IFHIMA as a Non• I reviewed the European Commission’sAHAIP public consultation questionnairein readiness for a conference call withAHIMA’s Global Services Office (GSO) on5th January 2011.• I participated in conference call withAHIMA’s GSO on 5th January 2011.• I produced a first draft of IFHIMA’sresponse to the consultation on AHAIP fora potential European Commission project.• I prepared IFHIMA’s response to theAHAIP consultation questionnaire andcirculated it to colleagues at AHIMA’sGSO. The consultation needed to becompleted and submitted on-line by 28thJanuary 2011. Each potential partner in aproposed project has to complete thequestionnaire independently but, obviously,the responses have to demonstratethat each of the partners have somethingto bring to the project. The European Federationfor Medical Informatics (EFMI),the Royal College of Physicians inLondon and Michael Rigby’s Social CareIntegration Working Party have indicatedwillingness to become partner organisationswith IFHIMA and GSO.• I provided introductory e-mail introductionsfor Joon Hong to Dr MohamedAli (WHO HIM Advisor, Eastern Mediterraneanand Dr William Soumbey-Alley,Head of Information, WHO RegionalOffice for Africa).4

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011• I produced a “Situational Analysis” oncountries in Europe for Stuart Green, newEuropean Regional Director, and membersof IFHIMA Europe. This is to providebaseline information on IFHIMA activitiesand members in all European countries.• I reviewed the minutes of the 16th IFHROGeneral Assembly produced by MarciMacDonald, Rapporteur.• I met with Leila Kalankesh, PhD studentat the University of Manchester, on 6thDecember to discuss IFHIMA GlobalResearch Project on Electronic HealthRecords. I produced a first draft of aresearch proposal which she commentedon. I then produced version 2 which iswith Leila for further comment. I havesuggested that we implement a qualityassurance process by asking foracademic reviews of the researchproposal.• I discussed the update of the “History ofIFHRO” with Phyllis Watson, Carol Lewisand Ulli Hoffman and I agreed to workwith Phyllis Watson on this project.Phyllis Watson and I agreed workingarrangements and methodology.• I produced President’s Report 2007-2010for Global News.• I produced a report on a meeting withNational Directors in Milan on 14th November2010 regarding a proposal forpotential European Commission project.• I am working to schedule a meeting withJean Roberts from the British ComputerSociety to discuss with her about howIFHIMA could gain introductions to HIMprofessionals in Eastern Europe.With my very best wishes,Lorraine NicholsonImmediate Past President5

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Congress reportof theXVI Congress of International Federationof Health Records Organizations (IFHRO)November 15-19 2010, Milan Italy6

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Report ofCongress President &President of AIDOSDr. Leonardo La Pietra, MD, MBAPresident of AIDOSDear attendees of IFHRO congress inMilan, dear friends of IFHRO,It was a great honour to host the 16thIFHRO Congress in Milan/Italy, November15-19, 2010. The theme of the congresswas “Better Information for Better Health;the way forward to a safe, responsive andintegrated healthcare”.The IFHRO Congresses that are organizedevery three years in different countriesaround the world came back to Europe afterfourteen years.The congress was held in Italy for the firsttime ever and it was a great opportunity toshare professional experiences with professionalsat an international level and tounderstand the state of the art relating toHealth Information Management (HIM)worldwide. The congress venue was theMilan Convention Center coinciding with theannual Convention of Italian Health RecordsOrganization AIDOS, which was establishedin 2004 and which is the Italian nationalrepresentative to IFHRO.More than 350 health Information Managers,Health Records Managers and healthcare leaders from 34 different countriesaround the world took this opportunity andtravelled to Milan to be part of thissuccessful event.The 16th IFHRO Congress provided an unrivalledopportunity for Health Records/Health Information Managers and all healthcareprofessionals and leaders to meet in avenue to strengthen their commitment toimprovement, participate in educational activities,professional networking, informationexchange and social activities.The congress offered more than 200 presentationsthat highlighted the latest developmentsin the fields of• Management and quality of medicalrecords• Clinical documentation and scientificresearch• Data management and integration ofcare• Classification systems, clinicalcoding• Clinical coding and quality of data• Electronic health records / patienthealth records• Monitoring and evaluation of health• Improving data quality for betterhealth• Education, training and development• Harmonization of health informationmanagementThe number and quality of the presentationsdemonstrated the high professionalism andthe very high standards of the HIM profession.Health professionals play anincreasing and more influential role in healthcare worldwide.7

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011In this context the job description of themajority of Health Records Manageraround the world has converted to HealthInformation Manager.To meet the requirements of this importantdevelopment the IFHRO executive committeemade a proposal to modify the nameof the federation IFHRO (InternationalFederation of Health Records Organizations)to IFHIMA (International Federationof Health Information Management Associations).This proposal was discussedand agreed within the IFHRO GeneralAssembly, held on Monday, November15 th , 2010.This change of name from IFHRO toIFHIMA met strong approval amongIHFRO members and in a ballot the majorityof votes confirmed the change of thename and acronym.I would like to thank the president LorraineNicholson, president of IFHRO 2007-2010so much for her excellent collaboration.Without her tireless commitment as well asthe strong and invaluable support of herexecutive committee the congress in Milancould not have taken place in the way thatit did.On behalf of the Organizers of the 16thCongress of the International Federationof Health Records Organizations, I wouldlike to thank you all for your preciouscontribution to the success of this eventheld in Milan, November 15-19, 2010.We hope you enjoyed the congress andhad a great time in Milan.Dr. Leonardo La Pietra, MD, MBAPresident of AIDOSAssociazione Italiana DocumentazioneSanitariainfo@aidosimera.itDr. Leonardo La Pietra (right) , president of AIDOS together with Lorraine Nicholson (mid),president of IFHRO 2007-2010 and Margaret Skurka (left) , IFHRO president 2010-20138

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Meeting of National IFHRODirectors, Deputy Directors andAssociate Memberson 14th November 2010Lorraine Nicholson,Immediate Past President of IFHROThe IFHRO Executive Board arranged apre-congress meeting for National IFHRODirectors, Deputy Directors, AssociateMembers and registered congress delegateson the afternoon of Sunday 14 thNovember 2010 at the Milan InternationalConference Centre. The meeting was dividedinto two parts; Part 1 was foreveryone and Part 2 for National andAlternate IFHRO Directors.Part 1 started with a session on the work ofthe WHO-FIC-IFHRO Joint Collaborationentitled “International Training and CertificationProgram: A Regional Approach” andit was facilitated by Marjorie Greenberg,Head, WHO Collaborating Center for theFamily of International Classifications forNorth America & Co-Chair, WHO-FIC EducationCommittee and Margaret Skurka,President Elect of IFHRO & Co-Chair of theWHO-FIC-IFHRO Joint Collaboration.Marjorie Greenberg gave a presentationexplaining the international ICD-10 traininginitiative, which had focussed on “cause ofdeath” data to date. She explained that thegoals of the initiative are to:• improve coding quality• support the coder workforce• create a suite of tools for training,beginning with “cause of death”(mortality) coding• develop comparable tools for morbiditycoding• develop and implement internationalcoding examinations (to assist inimproving coder status and professionalprofile) around the world• support HIM regional systems globallyAchievements of the initiative to dateinclude:• 60 coders passed the pilot underlyingcause of mortality examination as did19 coder-trainers and both groupswere awarded certificates. Sevencoding trainers were given honorarycertificates (these were the individualswho had developed the examination)• Japan and the Netherlands arecurrently field testing the trainingmodules.• Seven information sheets are nowavailable on the WHO-FIC andIFHRO websites, and all participantswere invited to utilize them. She alsoindicated that the entire trainingprocess had highlighted the lack ofworld wide standardization for thetraining of mortality coders.Approximately 40 million babies are borneach year globally, that are not registered,and approximately 40 million deaths globallyare also not registered. 85 countriesaround the world do not have appropriatevital statistics collection mechanisms inplace and there are no reliable data oncauses of death for 66% of the world’spopulation. Ms. Greenberg reported that theWHO Collaborating Centres are nowfocusing on improving civil registrationprocedures and the collection of vitalstatistics in developing countries, starting onthe African continent. This work is beingfunded for the next two years by the GatesFoundation, and the plan is to collectinformation on basic vital events globally,namely births and deaths. MOVE-IT is thename of the WHO initiative. The expectationis that it will continue beyond the initial 2-year period, once the infra-structure hasbeen put in place in developing countries.Additionally, the hope is to collect ICD data,and to extend this to community and healthfacility reporting in the future.Margaret Skurka, President-Elect of IFHROand co-chair of WHO-FIC-IFHRO, then explainedin detail the educational modulesthat are available for download free of9

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011charge on the IFHRO website. Six educationmodules are currently available,which cover the basics of HIM managementand an additional module on the ElectronicHealth Record is in the process of beingdeveloped and due for release in lateSpring 2011. The Manual for Educators hasalso been updated by IFHRO and is nowavailable free of charge on the IFHRO website.Plans are to add to the manual andkeep it current. All participants were encouragedto access and use these educationalmodules.An implementation check list is also availablefor developing countries. This can be used forthose countries/healthcare facilities that wantto implement a classification system – namelyICD (International Statistical Classification ofDiseases and Related Health Problems) orICF (International Classification of Functioning,Disability and Health). The checklist wasdeveloped by an HIM member in theNetherlands.Ms. Skurka stressed the need to developinitiatives at the local level, and that locallevel implementation and engagement isnecessary in order for initiatives to besuccessful. She explained that IFHRO andWHO have the same regional structure andtherefore this is complementary when aregional approach is planned and implemented.Efforts have been made to securefunding to expand the Joint Collaborationbut these have been unsuccessful to date.The challenges for Regional and NationalDirectors from the meeting were summarizedas follows:• Contact their WHO Regional Directors,and tell them about the joint collaboration• Disseminate WHO-FIC informationsheets to HIM Associations and HIMprofessionals in their own countries.• Identify one country within their regionthat would benefit from what wasdiscussed today, and assist them inutilizing all the tools available to them,and presented today including implementationtools, coding training, implementationof the coding examinations,improving and supporting civil Registration,and informing all HIM’s globallyabout the WHO-FIC-IFHRO Joint Collaborationand its achievements.The two speakers concluded their presentationby confirming that that the WHO-FIC-IFHROJoint Collaboration is committed to improvingthe HIM work force and data collection,improving HIM skills and status and improvingvital statistical collection globally.The presentations were followed by RegionalDiscussion Groups chaired by RegionalIFHRO Directors and facilitated by MarjorieGreenberg and Margaret Skurka and therewas then a plenary session to feedback to allparticipants on the points raised during thediscussions. After the plenary session Ms.Greenberg and Ms. Skurka thanked allparticipants and encouraged them to haveongoing dialogue about the issues discussedduring the session. All participants wereinvited to contact them at any time and theywere encouraged to use the IFHRO websiteto communicate around the world and to stayconnected with one another.Part Two of the meeting provided NationalDirectors and Deputies with an overview ofIFHRO’s Governance Structure, Categoriesof Membership, the format and proceduresfor the 2010 General Assembly to be heldthe following day including the process forelection of the Executive Board for the2010–2013 term of office and improvingcommunications between HIM professionalsaround the World. A facilitated discussionwas then held about how the role ofNational and Alternate IFHRO Director’scould be enhanced and realistic objectivesfor National IFHRO Directors and Deputieswere discussed. Lorraine Nicholson, Presidentof IFHRO closed the meeting andthanked all participants for their attendanceand input. The meeting was followed by aReception for participants hosted by theIFHRO Executive Board.10

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011National and Alternate IFHRO Directorsattending the Meetingon 14th November 2010, MilanFrom left (sitting): Gemala Hatta (Indonesia), Veronica Miller-Richards (Jamaica), Lorraine Nicholson (UK, IFHROpresident207-2010, Margaret A. Skurka, USA, IFHRO/IFHIMA-president 2010-2013, VickiBennett (Australia)From left (standing): Angelika Handel (Germany), Wybe Dekker (The Netherlands), Irene Bohlin (Sweden), Marcel vander Haagen (The Netherlands), Dr. Ramón Romero (Spain), Stuart Green (UK), Dr. Leonardo LaPietra (Italy), Cameron Barnes (Australia), Rita K. Bowen (USA), Marci MacDonald (Canada)11

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011The 16th IFHRO General Assemblyheld in Milanon Monday 15th November 2010Lorraine NicholsonImmediate Past Presidentl.nicholson@zen.co.ukIt was a great honour and a pleasure topreside at the 16 th General Assembly of theFederation, which was held on Monday 15 thNovember at the Milan InternationalConvention Centre, Italy. In addition tomembers of the Executive Committee therewere 32 members present representing 16countries around the world and there were25 observers.I called the Assembly to order at 09:30 hours,and welcomed everyone who was present. Ispecifically welcomed Sweden to the meetingas a re-joining country and also as a foundermemberof the Federation in 1968 and Iwarmly welcomed IFHRO’s newest nationalmember, Spain. The Executive Committeeintroduced themselves, and then everyone inattendance did the same. The agenda wasapproved and Marci MacDonald fromCanada, was appointed as Rapporteur. TheMinutes from the General Assembly held onMay 27, 2007 in Seoul, Korea, were approvedas previously circulated.The Assembly commenced with thepresentation of my President’s Report 2007-2010. I reviewed IFHRO’s history, and Iexplained IFHRO’s strategic alliances,reviewed the plans for on-line membershippayments, thanked Angelika Haendel forher excellent work on the Global Newspublication and everyone present wasencouraged to send articles for publication.AHIMA was thanked for their ongoingsupport of IFHRO, and in particular theirrecent undertaking to host the IFHROwebsite. Carol Lewis was thanked forreviewing the election process with theNational Directors the previous day andthanks were extended to Past PresidentsCarol Lewis, Ulli Hoffman and PhyllisWatson for agreeing to act as Scrutineersfor the elections for the ExecutiveCommittee for the next term of office andthe vote on the venue for the 17 th Congresstaking place later in the agenda.IFHRO’s Goals, Accomplishments and fiveStrategic Initiatives for 2007-2010 werereviewed and Financial Reports were circulatedand reviewed by President ElectMargaret Skurka from the USA. DarleyPeterson from Denmark, Chair of the MembershipTeam, made a presentation on thework of the Team to date and globalrepresentation of the Federation. AngelikaHaendel from Germany and Editor of GlobalNews presented a report on her work oncommunications to date, and explained thatapproximately 50 megabytes of memory areutilised when creating this electronicpublication which is distributed on a quarterlybasis.Margaret Skurka WHO-FIC-IFHRO JointCollaboration Co-Chair provided a comprehensivereport on the work of the Collaboration.Joon Hong from Korea and MarciMacDonald from Canada, are also IFHROmembers supporting the work of this group,and sit as active participants.Angelika Haendel reported on work in theEurope. There are 47 countries in Europe,and nine are represented in IFHRO. Shewent through the national membercountries, and introduced their Directorsand Alternate Directors. She also discussedthe mission of the European RegionalTeam, chaired by Lorraine Nicholson. ThisTeam was founded in 2000 in Melbourne,Australia. Future goals for the Team werereviewed, with a focus on bringing EasternEuropean countries on board with IFHRO.12

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011I then reviewed proposed changes to theConstitution and took everyone througheach of the changes. It was agreed thatsome of the changes needed some slightreworking and the final voting for theconstitution would be conducted by e-mailballot in order to ensure votes werereceived from any member country not inattendance at the Assembly. This ballotwould be concluded within two months ofthe date of the General Assembly.The ballot took place for the ExecutiveBoard for 2010-2013 and presentationswere made by the Canadian and Chineseassociations prior to the vote for the venuefor the 17 th International Congress in 2013.The IFHRO Executive Board had come torealize that the number of memberassociations was too small at this time tosupport a regional structure of the boardand this was reflected in the lack ofnominees from three regions of the world.Accordingly, a change in the constitutionwas proposed and the 2010-2013 would bea period of transition-directors would beelected at large from the names of thenominees and then each director would beassigned to serve as liaison with a specificregion of the world. The results of the ballotfor the Board for the years 2010 to 2013were as follows:• PresidentMargaret Skurka, USA• President- ElectAngelika Haendel, Germany• Directors- Sallyanne Wissmann, Australia(responsible for Western Pacific Region)- Yukiko Yokobori, Japan(responsible for SE Asia Region)- Joon Hyun Hong, Korea(responsible for Africa & E Mediterranean- Stuart Green, United Kingdom(responsible for European Region)- Marci MacDonald, Canada(responsible for the Americas Region)Canada was the successful bid to host the17 th Congress in Montreal in 2013.In the afternoon there was a number ofdiscussion groups on topics associated withIFHRO’s five key strategic objectives followedby a plenary feedback session. It wasthen my pleasure to award HonoraryMembership to Past Presidents Carol Lewis(USA) and Ulli Hoffman (Germany) forexceptional merit in furthering the goals andinterests of the International Federation.I drew the 16 th IFHRO General Assembly toa close at 16:00 hours. I read a card enclosedwith the gavel of the Federation,explaining that it was presented to IFHRO in1976 in Toronto, Canada, at the 7 th IFHROCongress.13

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011IFHIMA Executive Committee2010-2013From left : Angelika Handel (Germany), Marci MacDonald (Canada), Yukiko Yokobori (Japan),Lorraine Nicholson (UK), Margaret Skurka (USA); Vicki Bennett (Australia)by proxy of Sallyanne Wissmann, Stuart Green (UK)No picture: Joon H. Hong (Korea), Sallyanne Wissmann (Australia)Email-addresses of the IFHIMA Executive Committee 2010-2013Angelika Händel, GermanyAangelika.haendel@uk-erlangen.deMarci MacDonald, Canadammacdonald@haltonhealthcare.on.caYokobori Yukiko, Japanyokobori@jha-e.comLorraine Nicholsonl.nicholson@zen.co.ukMargaret Skurkamskurk@iun.eduSallyanne Wissmann, AustraliaSallyanne.Wissmann@mater.org.auStuart Green, UKstuart.green@bradfordhospitals.nhs.ukJoon H. Hongjh.hong.42@hotmail.com14

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal congress impressionsaround the worldUSAJamaicaUKThe NetherlandsSpainDenmarkGermanyQatarOmanIndonesiaTongaAustralia15

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsJosephine RawImmediate Past IFHRODeputy Director, AustraliaCameron BarnesImmediate Past IFHRODirector AustraliaIn May 2010, Cameron Barnes, Australia’sDirector to the International Federation ofHealth Records Organizations (IFHRO)started an email group of those Aussiesinterested in attending the 16th Congress ofIFHRO in Milan in November. The excitementwas beginning to build!It had all commenced 3 ½ years earlier atthe closing of the 15th IFHRO Congress inSeoul, Korea, where Milan, the venue forthe 16th Congress was announced. About10 Aussies joined the list along with a HIMfrom Ireland and also the UK.We all began arriving in Milan in mid-November, some lucky ones having come onfrom their holidays in other parts of Europe.Official proceedings commenced with pre-Congress meetings. The first meeting wasthe “International Training and CertificationProgram (ITCP): A Regional Approach”which provided an update on the WHOFamily of International Classifications (WHO-FIC) and IFHRO materials available asresources to the regions.Marjorie Greenberg, Head, WHO CollaboratingCentre for the Family of InternationalClassifications for North America and Co-Chair WHO-FIC Education Committeefacilitated the session and outlined thehistory of the relationship between WHO-FIC and IFHRO and goals of the ITCP.A u s t r a l i aThe IFHRO website (www.ifhima.org) includesa number of tools to support implementationalong with web-based educationmodules. A regional approach is best todisseminate best practice, and is an appropriateapproach because of local uniquelanguage, culture and needs and it linkswith the regional organisation of WHO,WHO-FIC, and IFHRO.The major pre-Congress meeting was the16th IFHRO General Assembly. Australiawas represented by Cameron BarnesIFHRO Director, Josephine Raw, DeputyDirector and Vicki Bennett, Regional Director,Western Pacific Region. The most significantitems on the agenda were:• Changes to the Constitution• Ballot for 2010-2013 ExecutiveCommittee and• Bids for 2013 Congress.A series of Constitutional changes werediscussed and debated with the mostnoteworthy change being that of the nameof IFHRO. It was agreed that the name bechanged to the International Federation ofHealth Information Management Associations(IFHIMA).Of interest to everyone in Australia is thatSallyann Wissmann has been appointed asRegional Director for Western Pacific.Tension was palpable during the voting forthe 2013 Congress. Excellent bids werereceived from the Canadian HIM Associationand the Chinese Medical RecordsAssociation. The winner was ultimatelyannounced as Montreal and we are lookingforward to 2013 and attending the Congressin such a vibrant and exciting location.There were approximately 400 attendees atthe Congress with 164 registrations fromcountries outside Italy, representing 33countries. The theme of the conference“Better Information for Better Health - theway forward to a safe, responsive and16

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011integrated healthcare” [sic] was reflected inthe range of topic areas for the breakoutsessions:• Health Information Management andPatient Safety• Electronic Health Records and PatientHealth Records• Privacy and Security• Health Information Management andScientific Research• Management and Integration of Care• Monitoring and Evaluation of Health• Classification systems, Clinical Codingand Data Quality• Management and Quality of MedicalRecords.There was something for everyone whoattended. Of particular interest to the Australianswas the paper on the Health CareInformation System in the region ofLombardy, Italy (Milan is the major city inthis region). Lombardy has a population ofapproximately 10 million people, and 9.9million residents have been issued with ahealth smart card. The smart card is used toprovide access to shared health informationacross the region – the electronic healthrecord (EHR).All hospitals and pharmacies are linked, and97% of the region’s 8,000 general practitioners(GPs) are part of the informationsystem. The data is kept locally at thehospital or health service, and a centralindexing and pointing service providesaccess to relevant information. A patientsummary is available for all patients, alongwith a prescription list, vaccination records,test results and discharge letters. The patientsummary contains the clinical history ofthe patient along with current state, and isupdated by the GP each time there is asignificant change in the clinical history orpatient condition. The summary also includesa pre-defined set of clinical data thatcan be accessed without authorisation incase of an emergency.The patient is able to access his own recordusing a PIN. The EHR includes a “personalzone” where the patient can record theirown health information or status – “personalisedhealth information” (PHI). All of thishas much relevance to Australia with theGovernment’s proposed PCEHR.Of particular interest to the Australiadelegates was that members of the ItalianHIM association (AIDOS) are invariablydoctors and nurses and that they areresponsible for the coding process.Many of the Australian delegates presentedon the same day and in sequentialsessions. As is often the case at internationalconferences, it was obvious thatthe HIM profession in Australia is at theforefront of innovation, or at least a fastfollower. It is also important to note thatAustralia is also leading the way in contributingto the HIM body of knowledge in ourWestern Pacific region by contributing significantlyto capacity building in countries thatdo not have the HIM infrastructure availablewithin Australia.Apart from the meetings, workshops andconference itself, one the highlights of anyIFHRO Congress is the opportunity to seefriends from around the world again: friendsfrom Ireland, Jamaica, US, UK, Germanyand China. Of course with every Congressnew friendships are formed, so already I amplanning my trip to Montreal in 2013 to seeeveryone again and hear about changes inhealth record practice around the world. Iurge everyone to start thinking aboutattending the next Congress.Josephine RawImmediate Past IFHRO Deputy Director,Australiajosephine.raw@racgp.org.auCameron BarnesImmediate Past IFHRO Director Australiacbarnes@cabrini.com.au17

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Aussies attended the 16th IFHRO congress in MilanFrom left to right (standing):Maryann Wood, Phyllis Watson, Cameron Barnes, Trish Ryan, Vicki Bennett, Diana ChengFrom left to right (sitting):Josephine Raw, Terri Letizia, Kate Wendt18

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsProfessor Phyllis J. Watson, AMPresident of IHFRO 1988 – 1992Having had the opportunity to attend ElevenIFHRO Congresses since 1968 it was withgreat anticipation that I travelled to Italy toattend the 16th Congress in Milan. I was notdisappointed. My expectations were realizedwhen I met so many old friends onSunday, 14 November at the GeneralAssembly and in the evening at the InternationalReception.The General Assembly, which continued thefollowing day was well organized and ofgreat interest to me as an observer. TheMayor of Milan opened the Congress on 16November with an interesting Addressabout ‘her’ city and extended an enthusiasticwelcome to all present. Leonardo LaPietra, President of AIDOS also gave awarm welcome to the Congress on behalf ofthe Italian Association and followed with afascinating historical account of medicalrecords dating back to the Smith Papyrus.Lorraine Nicholson, IFHRO President,welcomed participants on behalf of IFHROand wished us all a rewarding experienceover the next 3 days. Thus began a busy,stimulating and educational meeting, withmany quality papers from excellentspeakers.The Congress theme ‘Better Information forBetter Health’ was forever present over thenext days.As I sat listening to speakers I reflected onprevious Congresses and how our professionhas changed and grown over theA u s t r a l i apast 50 years. Although major developmentshave occurred, topics, discussed atthe first international congress in London in1952, such as disease (clinical) classificationsystems and coding, education ofmedical/health record/ information professionals,quality of information, and theexchange of information between colleaguesaround the world, were still importantprofessional issues in 2010. The differencetoday, however, is how information is processedand communicated in electronicform. This change was also reflectedthroughout the congress with many paperson electronic health records and relatedtopics such as Patient Held Records,General Practice Records, Privacy andConfidentiality of health information, andDiagnosis Related Groups (DRGs) by awealth of speakers from 34 countries.For me, important issues discussed includedthe need for accurate morbidity data,clinical documentation improvements andthe education of competent health informationprofessionals. Common phrasessuch as the integrity of data, analysis ofdata, and uses of correctly coded clinicaldata were expressed by many speakers. Amajor theme, and one expressed bymembers of the profession since 1952, wasthat good health outcomes depend onaccurate, timely and readily availableinformation. These issues are not new, butas highlighted throughout the Congress, areas essential today as they were in the past.Personally, I found the 16th IFHRO Congressa success. Many participants whom Ispoke with and who experienced their firstinternational congress also found it excitingand very rewarding. I congratulate the organizingCommittee and members of AIDOSon a well organized congress and lookforward to the 17th Congress in MontrealCanada in 2013.watsonpj@bigpond.net.au19

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsK i n g d o m o f T o n g aThis presentation was adapted from aWorking Paper of the Health InformationSystems (HIS) Knowledge Hub, Universityof Queensland, written as an outcome ofthe meetings with Health Information andSenior Health Officials from Pacific IslandCountries in 2009.Sione Vaioleti HufangaSenior Health Informatics OfficerHealth Planning and Information DivisionMinistry of HealthKingdom of TongaThe President of the Pacific Health InformationNetwork (PHIN), Mr Sione Hufanga,participated in the International Federationof Health Records Organizations (IFHRO)16th congress held in Milan, Italy on the 15-19 Nov 2010. The theme of the Congresswas “BETTER INFORMATION FORBETTER HEALTH the way forward to asafe, responsive and integrated healthcare.”The President of PHIN, in conjunction withthe current and former Presidents of theHealth Information Management Associationof Australia, presented a paper on theIssues of Health Information in the PacificRegion. An interesting pre-recorded videopresentation, including footage from Tonga,was shown, followed by verbal discussion,with many followup questions from theaudience.The content of this paper advocated for theimportant role of international organizationssuch as IFHRO and relevant traininginstitutions in mentoring and assistinghealth information development in countriesthat struggle to have the basic needs for asound HIS. The proposed regionalapproach inspired the participants andhighlighted the appropriateness of this typeof approach to identify the common HealthInformation issues. This message wasunique at this event, as the majority of thepresentations and discussions focused onthe issue of electronic health informationsystems.At the same time, it was noted that PacificIsland Countries define HIS using the HMNFramework, which included a corecomponent of vital statistics and populationbased, which is not always a considerationin developed countries.However, there was wealth of take homemessages for the PHIN members on theimportance of taking the right approachduring the transition from manual and semimanualinformation systems to electronichealth records and information systems.The PHIN would like to thank the HISKnowledge Hub and WHO for funding theattendance of the President at thisimportant international meeting.Sioneshufanga@health.gov.to20

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsIndonesiaIndonesia that the changes associatedwith changes in progress of the newparadigm and the ability of traditionalmedical record services to e-health recordand health information management to besound and given an understanding continuouslyfor the profession, educationalinstitutions, health care facilities and thegovernment through the Ministry of Healthin Indonesia.Elise Garmelia, A.Md. PerKęs,SKMPresident PORMIKI-IndonesiaI attended this IFHRO congress for thesecond time, before 15th IFHRO congressin Seoul South of Korea. It is very usefulfor me to follow this international congress,where I can meet professionals fromseveral countries; Asia-Pacific, Australia,Africa, Middle East, Europe and Americaalso Canada. I am very impressed andproud to know them. It looks like our professionis so high and valuable because ithas a professional association to be thelevel in the world.It was a great Congress in Milan with thetheme “Better Information for Better Health“.It was an opportunity for all health professionalsto participate in activities with allprofessionals networking and informationexchange through the science and newknowledge in the management of medicalrecords and/or IT-based health record.Although my first time to Europe, especiallyto Milan, Italy I always try to sayBon Giorno. This is a beautiful country andhas advanced with technology, ElectronicMedical Record and e-health, that is allvery spectacular and awe for me.Starting from the event up to the divisionof scientific sessions, very reasonably wellcoordinated. Holding pre congress meetingIFHRO organization, made me a lot tolearn about this professional organization,where the subject of our thoughts inThe Scientific Session presented was verydiverse but focused on the delegates experiencesof other countries, the morerevealing progress of IT-based medicalrecord. In addition, the papers that I like issome research results related to the use ofmedical records as a basis for research.There are several good papers and posterpresented and I take it and I will implementin our profession as a reference for conductinga survey or curriculum.The IT progress on e-health is very surprised,but it seems to me in developingcountries, it is very difficult to implementbecause of high cost and the ability of theprofession still needs improvement. I proposeon small groups in the pre congress,if IFHIMA can create a guideline and astandard or a minimum requirement tomake the modules / applications relate tocomputerized medical records and / or e-health for developing countries.I am so glad that I could attend this event,perhaps I took the most pictures withsome friends from other countries andthen I have tagged it on IFHIMA Facebook.In particular thanks to Margaret Skurka(the President of IFHIMA 2010-2013) whoinvited me to Gala dinner and to AngelikaHandel (President elect on 2013-2016) forgiving me the opportunity to write myimpressions during the congress in Milan,Gracias.21

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011I attended the congress together withGemala Hatta, Lily Widjaja, SarimawarDjaja and Dina Bisara being delegationfrom Indonesia.So much knowledge I have gained in thisCongress, so thought about how can Ibring more Indonesian delegate to attendthis event on 17th IFHIMA Congress inMontreal Canada ...See You.Eliseels_lia@yahoo.comElise Garmelia (right) together with Laura Manenti(left) from the Milan congress organizationFrom left: Marjorie Greenberg, Linda Kloss, EliseGarmelia, Lily Widjaya,From left: Elise Garmelia, George Kennedy, GemalaHatta, Lily Widjaya, Laxman Poudel22

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011• Congress Impressions•Q a t a rI personally had a good opportunity to sharemy views and suggestions on the ElectronicMedical Record, Coding and Education withcolleagues and experts.FRANCIS PAUL KIRUBAGARANBSc, BMRSc, MHAXVI-IFHRO congress in Milan waswonderful learning and awesome sharingexperience for HIM professionals like me.Our presentations and discussions wereclear evidence that we are progressingrapidly in Healthcare Information Managementin every part of the world.It is our duty to congratulate AIDOS andteam for organizing such successful eventin the beautiful city of Milan.Looking forward to meeting colleagues nexttime.Francisfrancispaulk@yahoo.comQatar Orthopaedic Sports MedicineHospital ASPETARPO Box-29222, Doha,QatarLot of efforts and resources are spent indevelopment of systems and if everyprofessional come forward to share andassist developing countries & others thenwe can forward towards our motto of thecongress “Better Information for BetterHealth”.IFHRO is the only ground that HIMprofessionals around the world directlyshare the experience of differentorganizations and expertise in HealthcareInformation Management. We need to find abetter way to communicate each other toshare the experience in their respectivearea of interest to overcome this area ofgreat complexity.23

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsGeorge KennedyProgram CoordinatorOman Medical Record InstituteMinistry of Health, MuscatThe 16th IFHRO International Congressand the 5th National Convention of AIDOSwas held in Milan, Italy from the 15thNovember to 19th November, 2010. InformationManagers and Health Record Managersfrom all around the world participatedin the event. The congress provided anunrivalled opportunity for health careleaders and health information managers toshare their professional experiences andexpertise with one another and tostrengthen the commitment towards theprofession. It also provided opportunities forthe delegates to participate in educationactivities, professional networking and toexchange information. Ms. Lorraine Nicholson,President of IFHRO presided over thecongress along with Mr. Leonardo La Pietrapresident of AIDOS as the chair for thecongress. The keynote speakers were fromdifferent WHO regions like Americas,European, Eastern Mediterranean, Sourth-EastAsia and Western Pacific. The theme of thecongress was “Better Information for BetterHealth” – The way forward to a safe, responsiveand integrated health care.Some of the sessions of the congress weredone in English only and some in Italianonly. However, we did have some sessionsin Italiano/English during which appropriatetranslation was provided.OmanThe first day started off with the IFHROGeneral Assembly and simultaneously wehad the IFHRO HIM Educators Forum inanother venue. The chairperson welcomedthe members present and introduced thetheme of the seminar. Following this was apanel presentation on the “Exploration ofGlobal Health Information ProfessionalEducation”. After the break MervatAbdelhak, University of Pittsburg, USAshared her views on computational thinkingand Genomics. Participants were enrichedon the approaches, methods and strategiesin computational thinking and an avenue forcollaboration was opened.In the afternoon the Exhibition wasinaugurated followed by the IFHRO GeneralAssembly, IFHRO Board of Directors andOfficers were elected during the time. Theafternoon sessions comprised of “Build andEnhance” an online course by Leslie Gordanand Lynethe Williamson from USA. Thefours subtopics included were: Communication,Collaboration, Interaction and Enhancement.Participants were provided withwebsites that could be used to construct anonline course.The 16th of November 2010 was yetanother enriching day. The day’s programstarted off with an opening ceremony. Thechairperson Mr. Leonardo la Pietra welcomedthe dignitaries present. Followingthis was a plenary session. Experts fromdifferent parts of the world shared theirexpertise of knowledge on “Health RecordsToday & The Role of The Health InformationManagement Professionals”. Thediscussions following the plenary sessionswere fruitful and informative.The afternoon session was chaired by otherexperts who highlighted the role of HIM’s inensuring the integrity of the patient record, thecurrent health information challenges andways to educate the HIM in an ever-changingenvironment. Ms. Kathy Giannangelo’s presentationon “Professional’s role in Informa-24

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011tics” was very practical. Her presentationincluded on why informatics, what isinformatics, relationship of informatics tohealth care, informatics and HIM and HIMopportunities in the informatics field. Followingthese experts from Japan, Germany, Indonesia,USA and Italy shared their experienceson health information management. Mr.Bernard Richards’s presentation on “Twentyyears experience of clinical coding examination”was a challenge to many of us.The evening session was highlighted by Ms.Lorraine Nicholson’s presentation on “Strengtheningaudit processes to improve recordsquality” and brief summaries of thehealth information management systemsacross the European boundaries. Followingthis was a session on “Monitoring andevaluation of health”. Practical demonstrationsof monitoring and the different toolsused for evaluation of health services werediscussed during this session. The day concludedwith discussions for the posterpresentation.On the next day, 17th November 2010 thekey issues in electronic health records werediscussed. Issues such as privacy and securityof patient information in an electronicenvironment, role of HIM in electronic healthdesign and electronic health records documentationwere presented and discussed bythe experts who chaired the session.Later in the day projects performed indifferent countries in relation to “Health informationmanagement and patient safety”were presented. Clinical information modelsfor exchanging and utilizing electronichealth records, terminology asset managementand various research studies in relationto patient safety were presented. Theexpert presentation on “Role of nationaladvisory committee in advancing healthinformation and management priorities” wasvery informative and useful. It was a goodopportunity for us as participants to knowthat the advisory functions include convening,studying, educating, evaluating,deliberating, visioning, recommending andadvocating. In the afternoon, presentationsrelated to health information managementand patient safety continued. New challengesto ensure safety, ways to promotesafety awareness, evaluation of medicalrecords and tools for risk prevention inclinical settings constituted this session.The evening sessions focused onmanagement and quality of medical records.Expert presentations on standards for healthrecords, evaluation of medical records, clinicalimpact of an advanced electronic medicalrecords, how transparency of outcomes improvesthe quality of medical managementand models to improve the quality of medicalrecords were presented.Thursday the 18th of November 2010 wasanother enriching day. Sessions on classifycationsystems, clinical coding and dataquality attracted the interests of the participants.The afternoon sessions focused onways for patients to collect, handle and sharetheir own data. In the evening we had expertpresentations on electronic health records,family digital health records and plenarysessions on classification system. The dayended with a closing ceremony and the venuefor the 17th IFHRO International congresswas announced.Friday the 19th of November, 2010 was thepeak of the stirring day. Congress madearrangements to visit the important healthcare institutes and explore the Italian healthcare delivery systems. Apart from thiscongress tour was arranged to Swiss Alps,Bernina Train, Verona, Lake Garda, LakeComo and wonderful Venice.I am sure all other participants would join withme in saying that it was a wonderful andenriching experience to be a part of this greatventure. See you all in 17th Congress,Montréal, Canada with new association title“International Federation of Health InformationManagement Associations” (IFHIMA)under the leadership of Ms. Margaret Skurka.George Kennedykennycmcin@yahoo.co.in25

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011•• Personal Congress Impressions•Carolina ConejoSEDOMOur association, SEDOM (Sociedad Españolade Documentación Médica), foundedin 1985, became in 2010 a member ofIFHRO, now IFHIMA. Three members ofSEDOM attended the XVI IFHRO Congressin Milan: Our President Ramón Romero, mycolleague José del Río and myself. Wehave been kindly invited by AngelikaHaendel to briefly comment our impressionsregarding the Congress and I will try tosummarize them.I think that “at home” is the expression thatwould condense how we felt during theCongress.We were “at home” from a professionalpoint of view because the topics that theCongress dealt with are the very ones weare involved with at our workplaces. It wasstimulating to listen to speakers with such astrong commitment with the theme “BetterInformation for Better Health - the wayforward to a safe, responsive and integratedhealthcare”. On the other hand, the Congresshas helped us to reflect on theeducational updating necessary in theHealth Information Management professional’sprofile to meet future challenges.We undoubtedly also felt “at home” due tothe very warm attention granted us since wefirst arrived at the Convention Centre till thelast afternoon when we left. We attended asobservers during pre- Congress activitiesand were impressed by the transparency ofthe deliberations.Lorraine Nicholson and Leonardo la Pietrawere magnificent hosts. Congratulations.IFHRO Executive Committee and theEuropean Regional Team will celebratemeetings at Málaga (Spain) next June 2011during the celebration of the XII CongresoNacional de Documentación Médica organizedby SEDOM.I wish you all a pleasant and fruitful stayamong us.Best regardsCarolina Conejo.carolina.conejo.sspa@juntadeandalucia.eswww.sedom.esS p a i n26

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Congress ImpressionsD e n m a r k• Will the planning of meetings andcongress result in satisfactory outcomesocially and professionally forthe delegates?Darley PetersenHealth Information ManagerOdense University Hospital, Denmark- IFHIMA Membership Team – Chair - (IMT)- IFHIMA Europe- IFHIMA Executive Board ex OfficioReflections after Milan Congress November2010.Returning to Danish facilities after a week inMilan participating IFHIMA meetings andthe 16th IFHRO World Congress it was apleasure to put forward information aboutthe success and outcome of the congress tomy national colleagues.Having participated in IFHRO World Congressessince 1992 in Vancouver the expectationsbefore this kind of event are very high.• Will I once again meet my globalcolleagues from all over the world?And – yes I did. Many friendships were updatedwith information about personal andprofessional life since last meeting. Thebreaks during the congress were busyhours hoping to reach as many as possible.Among new colleagues at the congress I havelooked forward to meet representatives fromthe Nordic countries. Attendees from Denmark,Sweden and Finland participated for thefirst time and I had the pleasure of introducingthem to the IFHIMA-family, so to speak.And – yes it did. Having been a small part ofthe huge teamwork which has worked onthe congress plans for more than one year,it was exciting for me to arrive on the spotand see the facilities for performing theprogram of this important event.The congress center was located in a shortdistance from the hotel. As the weather wasnot bright and sunny, actually the opposite,we decided to group up and take cabs toand from the hotel. It gave more time forbeing together in a social atmosphere.The congress center provided all facilitiesneeded and the services around the presentationswere just excellent. The personnelfrom the congress office werepresent from early morning to late night andwere doing a fantastic job for giving supportto speakers and attendees.• Will the chosen program includingspeakers and subjects be able tomotivate and inspire the attendees?And – yes it did. The program was built onparallel sessions. Sometimes it felt hard todecide which lesson to chose. Some sessionswere announced to be performed onlyin Italian language, others in Italian but withtranslation system installed. Everythingworked out satisfactory.Therefore, it was a well deserved applausefrom the audience that was given to thePresident of the Italian Association AIDOSand the head of the Congress Office at theend of this congress.• Were there as many delegates as expected?And – yes/no! From my point of view I wassorry to see that some European countries27

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011were not represented at the congress eventhough we have distributed emails verybroadly during many months.I hope that in future - when IFHIMA WorldCongress takes place in Europe - there willbe representatives from all countries inEurope.IFHIMA is working hard to be The Association,where Health Information Managersfrom all over the world may gather incommon to share professional experiencesand to exchange professional visions.It is therefore important, that delegates afterattending congresses distribute knowledgeand outcome to national colleagues andthereby motivate for being a part of thisglobal atmosphere.As a Health Information Manager youshould feel a natural need for internationalinformation!The next IFHIMA World Congress will beheld in cooperation with the CanadianAssociation in May 2013 - and I am ready togo for it!Kind regards,Darley Petersenpetersen.darley@hotmail.com28

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsU n i t e d K i n g d o mAmerica and Co-Chair, WHO-FICEducation Committee. And the PresidentElect of IFHRO and Co Chair of the WHO-FIC IFHRO Joint Collaboration MargaretSkurka opened the proceedings.The presentation described the variousWHO/IFHRO materials available as a freeresource for the regions:Stuart GreenIFHIMA Director EuropeMember of IFHIMA ExecutiveCommitteeWell – it was Saturday 13th November2010 and the day had finally arrived – Iwas going to my very first IFHROCongress in Milan Italy! It was 3.30 amand I was getting ready to travel toManchester Airport for the flight to Milan.My wife had very kindly agreed to drop meoff at the airport. Not sure if she wasregretting that kind offer when we woke upat 3.30 am or that she was going to miss me!I was not sure what would be in store forme as initially the congress was supposedto take place in Rho a town some 15 or somiles from Milan. Unfortunately the congresswas moved to Milan at relativelyshort notice and I could not cancel myhotel booking without losing the fullamount.The next day (Sunday) and I wasattending the MIC from 2.00 pm until 7.00pm. This was a very informative afternooncovering the following topics:International Training and CertificationProgamme: a regional approach.Marjorie Greenberg Head of WHOCollaboating Centres for the family ofInternational Classifications for North• International Certification and TrainingProgramme (The iTCP)• WHO – FIC Materials• Joint Collaboration Information Sheets• The Curriculum• The Coding Certification ProjectWe heard how the Joint Collaborationestablished an International Training andCertification Programme for ICD-10mortality coders and trainers between2004 and 2007. This programme nowoffers International exams with country orregional support to candidates.The Joint Collaboration has developed asuite of information resources for globalusers of international classifications whichincludes a freely-available series of informationsheets. This suite of informationsupports heath informatics systemdevelopment on a regional and globalbasisYes - this was a Sunday afternoon whenmost of us would be relaxing, but here wewere with our two exceptional presenterssetting the scene that for me was a mostenthralling and dynamic congress.By 4.00 pm and focussing on a plenaryfeedback session we were treated to yetanother thoroughly informative sessionchaired this time by our very own LorraineNicholson, President of IFHRO.This session focussed on IFHRO’s GovernanceStructure:29

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011• Executive Board• Regions and the Role of the RegionalDirector• Role of the National and AlternateDirectors• Committees and working groupsFollowing yet another excellent session wewere treated to a further and equallyinformative session from Darley Peterson– Chair of the Membership Team whoexplained the various categories of membership.We then moved on to what we as Nationaland Alternate Directors should expect fromMonday’s General Assembly. This sessionwas covered by Lorraine Nicholson,Margaret Skurka and Carol Lewis, PastPresident of IFHRO and scrutineer for theelections to the Executive Board for the2010-2013 term of office. I found thissession very interesting and to be honest Ihad not appreciated how formal my veryfirst General Assembly would be.The sessions ended with two morethought-provoking and challenging themesagain expertly delivered by AngelikaHaendel - Regional Director for Europewho spoke about communicationsbetween HIM professionals around theworld. Angelika asked:• How can IFHRO help globally?• How can Regional Directors help?• How can National Directors help?Lastly Margaret Skurka delivered the wayforward for IFHRO. Can I add at this stagethat I did manage to open my mouth on afew occasions and felt that we couldbroaden our communication globally by,dare I say it, opening up a Facebook pagefor IFHRO Professionals around the world.I felt that we need to gain more recognitionfrom our own countries, whereby HealthInformation Management policies andpapers are passed to our member organisations,in our case in the UK to IHRIM forcomments. My view is IFHRO could play apart in making this happen as it is IFHROthat carries the international flag for ourprofession.To round off the day at around 6.15 pm,we were treated to a drink and canapé receptionwhere we all had the opportunityto socialise in a less formal session. I wasfortunate to meet some very nice likemindedpeople and was still on a high as Imade my way back to the hotel arriving ataround 8.30 pm and full of anticipation forthe events ahead. If the next 5 days wereas good as this one then I would bedelighted!The IFHRO Executive is a very dynamicbunch of people and how they juggle theirworking lives with their busy role on theExecutive Board is anybody’s guess. Littledid I know.Monday and the day of the GeneralAssembly. It is 9.00 am and there is a call toorder and welcome. Various reports werepresented by the Executive Board and theballot for the 2010 – 2013 Executive Boardtook place.The morning session ended with twobrilliant presentations from the CanadianHealth Information Management Association(CHIMA) and the China MedicalRecord Association (CMRA) in their bidsto host the 2013 congress.The afternoon session included break outdiscussion sessions on 5 topics:1) Electronic Health Record2) Confidentiality and Security3) Education4) Data Quality5) Needs of the Developing CountriesThe outputs from these discussionsessions will be posted on the IFHROwebsite.The day ended at 5.00 pm but not beforethe successful bid for the 2013 congresswas announced and the winner was30

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Canada who will host the congress inMontreal May 2013.Finally the announcement of the 2010-2013 IFHRO Executive Board was madeby the Scrutineers:• President – Margaret Skurka (USA)• President Elect – Angelika Haendel(Germany)• Immediate Past President – LorraineNicholson (UK)• Membership Co-ordinator – DarleyPetersen (Denmark)• Regional Director Africa & EastMediterranean – Joon Hong (Korea)• Regional Director Americas – MarciMacDonald (Canada)• Regional Director South East Asia –Yukiko Yokobori (Japan)• Regional Director Western Pacific –Sallyanne Wissmann (Australia)• Regional Director Europe – StuartGreen (UK)Fancy that - I thought somebody with thesame name as me - oh no it was me!! Ihad been elected to the IFHRO ExecutiveBoard as the Regional Director for Europe!Shock turned to reality as I came backdown to earth!How many countries are there in Europe?How will I represent them all?Can I speak German, French, Spanish etcetc?Why did anyone want to vote for me?Was it the point I made about Facebookthat tipped the scales? I never likedFacebook anyway!After seeming to drift into some sort ofparallel universe, I eventually came roundto thinking what an honour this will be andhow privileged I am to be workingalongside some very highly respectedindividuals not only in their own countrybut globally too.I was now starting to relish the challengethat my new-found position would bring.I see it as a great opportunity to put thename of IHRIM very firmly on the InternationalAgenda and for IHRIM and itsmembers, have a voice and an ear to theground on new innovative developments inthe field of Health InformationManagement to which we are all involved.The first Executive Board meeting washeld on 18th November 2010 and SallyanneWissmann, Regional Director for theWestern Pacific joined the meeting viaSkype. The next Board meeting will beheld in Malaga, Spain on 2nd and 3rdJune 2011. I am sure 2011 will be a veryexciting year and I will truly endeavour tobe a shining light on the IFHRO ExecutiveBoard.One other thing to mention was a proposalto change the name of IFHRO to that ofIFHIMA to reflect the way organisationsare being seen throughout the world.Whilst a decision was not made to formallyaccept this proposed change to theconstitution at the time of the GeneralAssembly, I can report that at a ballot heldsoon after via email, this change of namewas accepted. So IFHRO is now known asIFHIMA - The International Federation ofHealth Information Management Associations.Well what a day and I could not hide myexcitement at gaining the votes to put meon the Board of IFHIMA!! Wait until I tellmy wife and of course my mum!!The following three days events andpresentations were again second to noneand each congress presentation as goodas the other. We heard about:• Education• Training & Development• Electronic Health Records• The role of the Health InformationManager31

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011• Harmonisation of Health InformationManagement across European Boundaries• Better Information - Better Health• Management and Quality of MedicalRecords• Monitoring and Evaluation of HealthManagement and Integration of Care• Classification Systems• Clinical Coding and Data Quality• Privacy and SecurityAll of these topics were presented with aninternational theme and a slant on howother countries deliver all of the above.It would be unfair of me to pick out thebest presentation as they were all good intheir own right. It is fair to say that if youhave never attended an IFHIMACongress, you should seriously considerchanging your mind and try as best as youcan to obtain the funding to attend the nextone. Why not try for some sponsorshipand head for Montreal in 2013, you will notbe disappointed I can assure you!For the rest of the week I met people andcame away with numerous business cardswith promises to “keep in touch” withfriends throughout the world.It is a very big place out there and it isgood to network with colleagues in similarsituations as ourselves globally.I also had the privilege to attend theEuropean Regional Team Meeting (nowrenamed IFHIMA Europe) on 19thNovember 2010, which is chaired byLorraine Nicholson. The team iscomprised of representatives from anumber of European Countries including:• United Kingdom• Germany• Netherlands• Italy• Sweden• Denmark• SpainDuring the meeting we met withrepresentatives from AHIMA (theAmerican Health Information ManagementAssociation) Global Services Office, whichis based in Brussels, who were keen towork with IFHIMA Europe on a number ofkey topical issues that were mutuallybeneficial.The AHIMA representatives were:• Rob Nelson – Senior Vice Presidentand Managing Director, Global Operations• Dani Kolb – Director AHIMA GSOBrussels• Sandy Fuller – Chief OperatingOfficer AHIMA USAI hope to give more feedback from thismeeting in a future edition of the e-Journal?May I suggest you take ten minutes out ofyour busy schedules and access theIFHIMA website, which holds some veryinformative reports, presentations andnews? You might even consider joiningIFHIMA. You can access the website onhttp://www.ifhima.org/My trip to Milan was a truly memorableone for all the reasons listed above andmore besides!!Should you wish to know more aboutIFHIMA or IHRIM then do not hesitate tocontact me at:stuart.green@bradfordhospitals.nhs.uk32

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsWybe Dekker (left) andMarcel van der Haagen (right)The NetherlandsVisit to Milano conference ‘Betterinformation for better Health’ and the 16thIFHRO conference.A rainy but friendly Milano was thebackground to attend the conference‘Better information for better Health andthe 16th IFHRO world meeting. The organizationof the conference was very welldone by the young Italian association andwe enjoyed various good presentations ina relaxed and pleasant colleagual athmosphere.Special sessions were arrangedwith comparisons of health informationmanagement in development countriesand developed countries. We believe thatIFHIMA (formerly IFHRO) is an importantplatform to share experiences, whichbrings us to a higher level of quality inhealth information management.We were part of the largest delegationafter the group from the US, also thanks tothe decision of the board of the NetherlandsAssociation of Health InformationManagement (NVMA) to join the conferenceas a team. Next to the presence ofvarious other Dutch people. To use aDutch expression: how a small countrycan make the difference! This is an expressionwhich has in this case a positiveconnotation.The NetherlandsBecause of the parallel programme ofIFHIMA we were present as well. A presentationof the Dutch reimbursementsystem was given. Also here the pointmade was: how a small country can makethe difference. However, in this case thedifference was not that positive, for thereimbursement system needs adjustmentsbadly. Moreover we should have had acloser look to other financial systems suchas DRG that had proven already goodresults for financing health care. Neverthelessthe Netherlands longed for a new reimbursementsystem without the small imperfectionsof the DRG system. So again howa small country tries to make the difference.In historical view, the NVMA started in1963 and has nowadays almost 500members, mainly working in hospitals.Over the past 20 years we looked moreand more abroad to meet with colleaguesand learn from each other. For instance onthe subject of education we can learn a lotfrom what has been reached in Australia,USA and Canada. Netherlands is refreshingthe educational curriculum forhealth information manager at this verymoment. The former curriculum dates from1997 and is rather outdated. The visit ofthe board of the association was in thatrespect a learning experience.During our visit we also took the opportunityto visit the Milano Major Hospital with thespecial block built in 1637 containing 6.000document folders. A smaller building next tothat was built in 1767 to preserve archivalrecords. We have never seen such longitudinalarchive before. A perfect trip underliningthe motto of the conference: betterinformation for better health.Our experiences in Milano last year makes uslong for the 17th conference in 2013 in Canada.Marcel van der Haagen and Wybe Dekker,IFHIMA representatives Netherlandswybe.dekker@planet.nlmam.vdhaagen@vumc.nl33

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsUlrich Wirth (left) and Markus Stein (right)The delegation of Germany has been rathersmall, comparing to the number of othercountries – five had been announced, justfour have attended the congress in Milan.Three amongst us had conducted presentationscovering the role of the Germanhealth information management association(DVMD), the education of young professionalsin the context of the concept of “unleashedvocational school” and the role ofthe reimbursement system (German-relatedDRGs) on the Clinical documentation.As it was the first time we took part in anIFHRO congress, we were much pleasantlysurprised as well as impressed by thelong list of nations visiting and participatingactively during these five days in Milan.However, the high number of attendingItalian professionals was quiet natural. Butthe possibility to exchange experienceswith colleagues from other Europeancountries (and not only our German neighbours)as well as colleagues from Australia,North America, Asia, well, even fromMelanesia may give more than a clue tosolve some “national” problems.The congress organization was done verywell, everything went smooth – except forthe weather. The Staff was friendly, veryobliging and professional. We attended alot of interesting sessions. Also the socialprogram is worthy of being mentioned.We’re still impressed about the HistoricalArchive of the Ospedale Maggiore wherewe had attended a guided tour through 500years of historical medical tools andmanuscripts.Tabarnak*, the congress had everything!Sounds like we were quiet happy abouthaving come to Milan, eh*? Yes, we wereand still are happy. Just one stain remains,however. Referring to the various sessionswe would like to suggest that the time ofthe different lectures should be adjusted.It’s a pity that some specific and interestingtopics were conceded a time frameof just 10 minutes whereby the subjectcould not be covered, whilst other lectureshad the comfort of exploring their subjectsin 20 to 25 minutes. However, that’s theonly organizational suggestion we wouldlike to give for future congresses: less timefor general lectures and more time forspecific topics which should be pooled inspecial sessions (e.g. “Documentation inDRG-countries”, “Comparison of educationalcurricula in different countries”, “Medicaldocumentation in integrated care”).We would like to end with a personalremark. Both of us were close to freakingout the moment we got the news that thenext IFHIMA congress will be held inMontréal, Québec. And who knows,maybe there will be a chance for us as bigfans of the famous “Canadians deMontréal” to see the “Habs” in the StanleyCup Play-offs, that would top off thecertainly perfect social programme tocome (Marci knows what we’re thinkingabout). You see, we have many goodreasons for looking forward to visitMontréal in 2013, and we send our bestwishes to the organizational team inCanada.Markus Stein & Ulrich Wirthmarkus.stein@ethianum.dewirth.ulrich@es.trier.eso.deG e r m a n y* We recently started to improve ourQuébecois as well as our CanadianEnglish…34

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsG e r m a n yUlli HoffmannPresident of IFHRO 1992 - 1996Similar to my friends Phyllis J. Watson andCarol A Lewis I was able to become partof the ‘IFHRO family’ in 1976 and had thechance to attend ten IFHRO Congresses.This time the 16th IFHRO Congress inMilan/Italy was “close” to home (Germany)and although retired for some years Irealized that it is a “must” to participate.Each time I find it rewarding to meet againwith many old friends and colleagues andmaking new ones. This has not changedover many years.The relative new member association ofItaly - AIDOS – did an excellent job inorganizing the event. This Newsletterreflects the interesting theme and theactivities of the days in Milan. - During theGeneral Assembly meeting I was given anAward of Honorary Membership of IFHRO.This Award was most unexpected andtherefore I am proud to have been able toplay a small part in IFHRO’s developmentfor some years.I like to thank the members and the EC forthe honour and will try to continuesupporting the Federation as long aspossible.With best wishesUlliUlli.Hoffmann@online.de35

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsU S ACarol A. Lewis, MPHPresident of IFHRO 1984 - 1988I attended my first international Congress in1956 and since then have participated in anadditional 11. While each Congress wasunique, they all shared the factors thatmake attendance essential for me – thepleasure of seeing old friends, meeting newcolleagues, and the mental stimulation ofbeing exposed to thought-provoking ideas. Iam most grateful to AIDOS for hostingIFHRO 2010 and greatly admire the officersand members of this new association forhaving undertaken this significant event.Warmest regards,CarolCalewis213@aol.comFrom left (sitting): Phyllis J. Watson, Ulli Hoffmann, Laxman PoudelFrom left (standing): George Kennedy, Janice Bryan, Veronica Miller-Richards, Carol A. Lewis36

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011U S APersonal Congress ImpressionsRita K. Bowen, MA, RHIA, CHPS, SSGBEnterprise Director HIM Services - ErlangerSystemPast President for the American HealthInformation Management Association "AHIMA""Participating in the IFHIMA Congress is awonderful learning experience that enablesAHIMA leaders to gain invaluable HIMperspectives from different countries. Whilethere we were able to make new globalcontacts and at the same time renewestablished relationships. It is alwaysamazing to rediscover that our sharedsimilarities in Health Information Managementseem to far outweigh any differences.”423-778-6734 office or Blackberry 423-718-0194"Quality Information for Quality Health Care"37

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Personal Congress ImpressionsVeronica Miller-RichardsPresident of JMRAEmail: vernrich21@yahoo.comThe International Federation of HealthRecords Organizations (IFHRO) renamedInternational Federation of Health InformationManagement Association (IFHIMA)is a non-profit organization affiliated withthe World Health Organization (WHO) as anon-governmental organization (NGO).The Federation sends representatives toWHO meetings and works closely withWHO on specific projects of particular concernor interest to WHO in the field ofhealth records and information systems.IFHRO was established in 1968 as aforum to bring together national organizationscommitted to improvement in theuse of health records in their countries.International Health Records Congress is heldevery three years. The Congress is hosted byone of the national member organizations.This is an opportunity to bring togethermember countries, other interested countriesand individuals in an international forum toparticipate in educational sessions and networkingopportunities.The 16th Congress was hosted by membercountry Italy in the city of Milan at theMIC – Milano Convention Centre. Thetheme for this year’s congress was “BetterInformation for Better Health”, the way forwardto safe, responsive and integrated healthcare.J a m a i c aThe official language of the congress wasEnglish and Italian was translated.Jamaica who is a member of the IFHRO/IFHIMA was represented by two personsnamely Veronica Miller Richards, RegionalHealth Records Administrator of SouthernRegional Health Authority and President,Jamaica Medical Records Association andJanice Bryan, Health RecordsAdministrator in the Ministry of Health and1st Vice President, Jamaica MedicalRecords Association. Every three years arepresentative from Jamaica is sponsoredby Ms. Carol Lewis who is an HonoraryMember, IFHRO/IFHIMA to participate inthis event.The trip to Milan, Italy started onNovember 12, 2010 in the late afternoon.We departed from Norman Manley InternationalAirport for London and transitedthrough London Gatwick and Heathrowairports by the use of a shuttle airport buson the morning of Saturday, November 13,2010. This was smooth and uneventful.Our next transit was from LondonHeathrow airport to Malpensa airport inMilan. On arrival in Milan, we wereconfronted with transportation challenges.There were various means of transportationnamely trains, taxis, buses andtramp cars. We had to use the MalpensaExpress train to get to a train station calledCardona and then on to Amendola ourfinal stop. From there on maps were usedto identify the trains to board and thevarious stops to get off. Later, withguidance and support from a fellowJamaican who lives in Milan, we finallyarrived at our first hotel known asDomenichino which was now late night.We had travelled for two days and werevery tired.Although we did our weather checksbefore departure from Jamaica, we did notexpect the bad weather which started thefollowing morning. It rained for most of the38

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011days and the temperatures were between6-8 degrees Celsius. This was unbearable.Unfortunately, no shuttle arrangementswere made for us by the organizers of theevent and so getting to and from thevenue was a challenge for participants.We had to walk in the rain as the taxisrefused to take us, and the maps becameour best friends in finding the venue. Itmust be noted that prior to our departurewe were given a per diem along with asmall allowance from our sponsor to coverour incidental expenses. This was howeverinadequate as most of that allowancewent into transportation with little food orsocial activities. The language barrier andproper communication was our biggestchallenge.Our first meeting was held on Sunday,November 14, 2010. This meeting waswith National and Alternate IFHRODirectors and Associate Members ofIFHRO/IFHIMA. It was divided in twoparts. Part 1 was for the NationalDirectors, Alternate Directors and AssociateMembers of IFHRO and Part 2 wasfor the National and Alternate IFHRODirectors only.The President of IFHRO, Mrs. LorraineNicholson did a presentation on “InternationalTraining and Certification Program:A Regional Approach”. Welcomeand Introductions from various countrieswhich then included the Executive Committeeof IFHRO were done. Mrs. MarjorieGreenberg, Head, WHO CollaboratingCenter for the Family of InternationalClassifications for North America & Co-Chair, WHO–FIC Education Committeeand Mrs. Margaret Skurka, President Electof IFHRO & Co-Chair of the WHO-FIC-IFHRO Joint Collaboration presented onthe International Coding and Training Program,WHO-FIC materials, Joint CollaborationInformation Sheets, The Curriculumand the coding certificate project.There were various discussions regardingthe presentations.Mrs. Lorraine Nicholson, President of IFHROopened Part 2 of the afternoon sessions witha warm welcome to all. The Overview ofIFHRO’s Governance Structure whichincluded the Executive Board, Regions andthe Role of the Regional Director, the Role ofthe National and Alternate Directors and theCommittees/Working Groups were addressedby her.The Chair of the Membership Team, Mrs.Darley Peterson, spoke on the Categories ofMembership. The 2010 GA was discussedwhich included the format – Mrs. LorraineNicholson, The Elections – Ms. Carol Lewis,Choosing the venue for the 2013 IFHROCongress – Mrs. Lorraine Nicholson andDiscussion Topics – Margaret Skurka, PresidentElect.A presentation on “Improving Communicationsbetween HIM Professions around theWorld” was done by Mrs. Angelika Haendel,Regional IFHRO Director (Europe).Mrs. Margaret Skurka discussed “How theroles of the National and Alternate IFHRODirectors can be enhanced and settingobjectives for this”. She also discussed theway forward for IFHRO. This was a rathervery informative and educational meeting.The afternoon’s proceedings concludedwith a reception cocktail. Various Italiandishes and wines were served. This alsogave the group more opportunity to meetand greet new and old friends.On Monday, November 15, 2010 theIFHRO‘s General Assembly was held. Thiswas another fruitful day as we saw to theelection of the new executive committee,selections of six Regional Directorsrepresenting Europe, Americas, SouthEast Asia, Western Pacific, Eastern Mediterranean,and Africa regions.A warm welcome was extended by thePresident. The minutes of the last GAmeeting of the 15th Congress held inSeoul, Korea 2007 was read and adaptedby the Directors. Proposed amendments39

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011to the constitution were also undertakenwith some adjustments to be made andforwarded to the National Directors byemail. This included the name InternationalFederation of Health Records Organizations(IFHRO) being amended to readInternational Federation of Health InformationManagement Associations (IFHIMA).All other Associations globally wereencouraged to have their names amendedalso. It was then agreed that an electronicballot would be done on the final draft ofthe document.President Elect, Mrs. M. Skurka, in discussingthe way forward made mention ofthe fact that the American Health InformationManagement Association (AHIMA)had volunteered to assist with documentationand managing of the IFHRO’swebsite. There was greater need forpersons to become Associate members ata small cost of US$35 per year. All wereencouraged to join.Ballot for the 2010-2013 voting of ExecutiveCommittee was done by the Directors with thescrutineers – Ms. Carols Lewis, Phyllis Watsonand Ulli Hoffman at the helm.The bids for the 17th IFHRO 2013Congress was done by the CanadianHealth Information Management Association(CHIMA) and the Chinese MedicalRecords Association (CMRA). The bidswere very well presented. Recognitionsand Awards were given to Miss CarolLewis and Miss Ulli Huffman for long andoutstanding support to IFHRO.A plenary discussion session was heldwith each regional group. An individualwas appointed as the rapporteur tofeedback in the plenary session on behalfof the group. Four major issues namelyElectronic Health Records, Privacy,Security and Confidentiality of PersonalHealth Information, Clinical Data Managementand Health Record/Health InformationManagement Education werediscussed. The announcement of thesuccessful bid for the 17th IFHRO Congresswas done.The Canadian Health InformationManagement Association (CHIMA)became the winner and as such the nextCongress will be held in Montreal,Canada, May 11-15, 2013.IFHRO HIM Educators Forum along withthe V AIDOS-IMERA National Congress(Italian Medical Records Association)which runs concurrently with the GeneralAssembly was also held. Various discussionsrelating to health informationmanagement which included GlobalHealth Information Education and WorkforceNeeds and Education and TrainingFramework for HIS were held.The introduction of the 2010 – 2013Executive Board and Regional Directorswas done by Mrs. L. Nicholson.The Opening Ceremony was held onTuesday, November 16, 2010. The Mayorof Milan, Dr. Leonardo Pietra, along withthe President, IFHRO Mrs. LorraineNicholson and President of the ItalianMedical Records Association (AIDOS),gave their opening remarks. The Presidentof AIDOS presentation was veryinformative. It included a history of healthrecords in Italy dating as far back as to the15th century (1440).The Plenary session was later openedwith the topic being “Health RecordsToday & the Role of the Health InformationManagement Professional”. The othertopics/discussions which followed werejust as informative and educational.The abstract and poster sessions beganon Wednesday, November 17, 2010. Theoral presentations were divided into twosections, English only or Italian only. Eachparticipant had a code that was used toidentify which room their presentationwould be held. These rooms wereidentified by the colors red, orange andgreen.40

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011There was a wealth of information andknowledge gained from these presentations.Jamaica received commendationsfor our oral presentation on the Adaptationof Electronic Health Records in Jamaica.This was a research paper that wasconducted prior to the Congress. Jamaicawas the only Caribbean country representedat the Congress. Some countriessought our permission to use the findingsof our research as a model evaluation toolto improve the health information systemsin their country.Of interest, as a developing countryJamaica was described as way ahead ofother developed countries in the use of theInternational Classification of Diseases forboth mortality and morbidity coding. TheInternational Statistical Classification ofDiseases and Related Health Problems,10th Revision, is the international standarddiagnostic classification for general epidemiological,health management and clinicalpurposes. These include analysisand monitoring the incidence and prevalenceof diseases and causes of death, aswell as other health problems with respectto variables such as the characteristics andcircumstances of the individuals affected.ICD-10 serves as a language-independentframework and has been translated intomore than 40 languages. Jamaica has formany years been using the ICD 10 codingmanuals as recommended by the WorldHealth Organizations (WHO). It is hopedthat very soon other Caribbean countrieswill join as members and as the sayinggoes unity is strength. The posterpresentations were just as informative andshowed the wealth of knowledge andcreativity in its preparation and display.Sightseeing tours were arranged from thebeginning of the Congress as a part of thesocial events. The Social Gala Dinner washeld later in the evening at the RistoranteEl Brelin. This was one of the very ancientrestaurants in a city known as Cardona inItaly. A three course meal was servedwhich consisted of pasta dishes, Irishpotatoes and beef which were mouthwatering.Very rich wines, a tasty dessertand coffee were also served.On Thursday, November 18, 2010, theoral presentations continued. The finalpresentations were done by Presidentelect,Mrs. Margaret Skurka and Dr.Bedirhan Ustun, WHO. In Mrs. Skurka’spresentation entitled “Quality data, Qualitycoding and the HIM profession of thefuture”. She made specific mention ofsome basic ways how we can enhanceour selves and the Association/ Organizationthat we serve. They were toembrace, be focused, take responsibilityand initiative, commit to continuouslearning, embrace change and communicateeffectively, to be the best that youcan, quality data makes a difference andlet us make a difference together.In his speech, Dr. Bedirhan Ustun spokeon the Health Information Standards andThe International Classifications historyfrom as far back as 1948 when the ICD 6was developed. This was later updated bythe ICD 10 in 1990 and the ICD 11 is nowbeing developed for 2014. InternationalNomenclature Regulations has all memberstates agreeing to use WHO classifycationsby treaty (1967).The ICD 11 is been produced through jointauthoring, review, field testing, multiplelanguages, new cases and business applications.He also commented on the factthat WHO has other development pipelinesin place. Some of these were ICHI(intervention classification) development,ICTM (traditional medicine) development –first module is China, Korea and Japanbased and ICPS (patient safety) development.These new developments were encouragingfor the countries that were wayahead in the use of the ICD and for those whowere not as advanced they were encouragedto get on board and be upgraded.41

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Sadly, it was now time for the closingceremony. Mrs. Lorraine Nicholson, PresidentIFHRO gave her farewell speech.She expressed thanks to all for theircontinued support during her tenure andwas happy to remain for another year togive additional support to the new Executivemembers. She was later presentedwith a plague for her hard and dedicatedwork to IFHRO by Mrs. M. Skurka. ThePresident, AIDOS also spoke briefly on theproceedings of the week and congratulatedall the presenters and other participantswho attended the congress. The hugs,kisses and some teary eyes signalled a veryexciting and refreshed week of knowledgebased information had come to an end.A total of thirty four (34) countries across theworld were represented. These wereAustralia, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, China,Cote D’Ivorie, Denmark, Finland, France,Germany, Guadeloupe, India, Indonesia,Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan,Kuwait, Laos, Mauritius, Monaco, Nepal,Nigeria, Oman, Portugal, South Korea,Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tonga, UnitedArab Emirates, United Kingdom and theUnited States of America.The visits of healthcare facilities wereconducted on Friday, November 19, 2010.These facilities were as follows:- Historical Archive of the Ospedale Maggioreis a building constructed to house one of thefirst community hospitals, the largest suchundertaking of the fifteenth century. Over some500 years of hospital history includingmanuscript records and medical tools weremade available for viewing. European Institute of Oncology (IEO) is astate-of-the art non-profit comprehensivecancer centre that is active in three areas –Clinic, Research and Training. The IEO strivesfor excellence in the prevention, diagnosis andtreatment of cancer by developing clinical andscientific research coupled with innovativeorganization and management, in a context thatpays constant attention to the quality of theservice offered to patients.We were afforded the opportunity to dosome sightseeing tours by the sunny butvery, very cold weather. There were somevery beautiful and exciting locations thatwere visited, some of which were the: Duomo Square and Cathedral (begun in 1386under the dukes Viscont. It recalls French andGerman experimentation with central-EuropeanGothic) Galleria Vittorio Emanuelle 11(Architect GiuseppeMengoni (1865). Dedicated to the first king ofItaly and is called “The living-room of Milan”) Ambrosianna Library and Art Gallery (oldestmuseum of Milan, showing works by Leonardoda Vinci, Botticelli, Tiziano etc) La Scala Opera House and the Theater Museum(illustrates the history of the theatre throughcollections of paintings, miniatures, autographs,posters etc. One of the most important Opera-Houses in the world (1778) Royal Palace (designed by Giuseppe Piermarini(1778), now houses important artexhibitions) Alessandro Manzoni’s House (home of famouspoet, preserves the original furniture and hisimportant library) Palazzo della Ragione (medieval complex (1223),former seat of Podesta (governor of the city) Palazzo Marino (houses the City Hall and theMayor’s Office (1553) Affari Square and Stock Exchange (built inthe 30’s by the architect Paolo Mezzanotte) andvarious other beautiful fashion districts. Also ofnote was a very large variety of tramp cars thatwere used to transport commuters to varioustowns across the city.On Saturday, Nov. 20, 2010, we had tochange hotel. This time we were going toanother city known as Rho. Our new hotelwas the Hotel Esperia. Our major meansof transportation to get there was by theunderground subway. Unfortunately for us,we thought that the Rho Fieramilano cityand Rho were the same places, until wegot lost. From here on it was total misery.We were humiliated by the Italians and atone point Veronica was pushed off anescalator with all her luggage. Luckily, aBritish national was able to tell us where topurchase the tickets and directed us to geta bus that would take us to Rho city.The taxi arrangement for us to get to theairport on Monday, November 22, 2010,was made by our sponsor. On a sad notehowever, we were in a very unfortunatesituation in Italy and was stranded fordays. The re-confirmation of the taxi pick-42

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011ing us up from the hotel to the airport wasa wreck. The taxis decided they could nottake us to the airport for Euro 60 butinstead Euro 85. We were not told thisinformation until approximately 10:30pmon the night of Sunday, Nov 21, 2010. Dueto security reasons, we were afraid toleave the hotel the same night to sleep inthe airport in order not to miss the flight forMonday to Jamaica. The morning startedat 5:30 am, with us using two trains andthe Express Shuttle bus to get to the airport.Our flight was scheduled for 7:50 amand we got there at 7:30 am. The BritishAirways receptionists were very unaccommodatingand told us that at that time theflight had already left. We requested to beplaced on a connecting flight to Londonand were denied and were informed thatthe only other flight for Jamaica would beon Friday, Nov. 26, 2010 and we had topurchase new tickets. From there oneverything went into chaos. We struggledwith just getting basic information to maketelephone calls and the use of the internet.Later we got some support from the airportpolice when the Consulates of Rome andGeneva stepped in. They assisted them bothto communicate with us using their telephone.breakfast at the hotel on Wednesday. Theweather (-3 degrees Celsius) was veryunbearable. Arrangements were made byour support team from Southern RegionalHealth Authority in Jamaica for us to stay ina hotel but the reservations came the nextmorning (Thursday at 2 am) and out of fearof missing another flight, we decided to stayat the airport. It was a very traumaticexperience for us. We got home on the nightof Thursday, November 25, 2010.A life-long experience it was for us. Awealth of knowledge was gained from theCongress and it is hoped that we canadopt and implement some of the thingsthat the IFHIMA has done in order to makethe JMRA superb.We would personally like to thank ourfamilies, sponsor and other stakeholderssuch as the Southern Regional HealthAuthority, the Ministry of Health and theConsulates of Rome and Geneva forensuring our safe return home andaffording us the opportunity ofrepresenting Jamaica and having theopportunity of meeting and making newfriends for life.We slept at the Linate airport on Mondaynight (with little food or money) and werelater placed in Hotel Holiday Inn on thenight of Tuesday, November 23, 2010.This was done with the kind support fromthe Consulates of Rome and Genevaalong with our Jamaican counterpartssuch as Southern Regional HealthAuthority and the Ministry of Health.A flight was arranged from Jamaica to get usto London for Wednesday, November 24,2010 in the afternoon. We landed at LondonHeathrow airport and transited by bus toLondon Gatwick. We slept at Gatwick airporton Wednesday night (without food etc. drywashed ourselves and changed ourclothing) and boarded our flight for Jamaicaon Thursday, November 25, 2010. On theflight, that was our first meal after we had43

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Meeting with Mr. Sooneeraz Monohur,Chief Health Records Officer,Ministry of Health and Quality of Life,Port Louis, MauritiusRodrigues 570 km to the northeast. Theisland of Mauritius is 45km in width and65km in length. Mauritius is a blend ofdiverse cultures and religions and mostpeople in Mauritius are bilingual and areequally fluent in English and French. Creoleand French are the main languages in theeveryday environment and several orientallanguages are also spoken.Lorraine NicholsonImmediate IFHIMA Past Presidentl.nicholson@zen.co.ukLorraine Nicholson (left) and Sooneeraz Monohur (right)It was a great pleasure to welcome Mr.Sooneeraz Monohur, Chief Health RecordsOfficer, Ministry of Health and Quality ofLife, Port Louis, Mauritius to his first IFHROCongress. Mr. Monohur and I have correspondedby e-mail over the last couple ofyears and this was the first opportunity thatwe had had to meet face-to-face. We spentsome time talking about global, topicalissues for Health Records and HealthInformation Managers and also aboutpotential developments in Mauritius. Wealso discussed how IFHRO could providesupport for health records managers andstaff. I also introduced Mr. Monohur to othermembers of the Executive Board.The Republic of Mauritius is an islandnation 2000 kilometres off the southeastcoast of the African continent in thesouthwest Indian Ocean, about 900kilometres east of Madagascar. In additionto the island of Mauritius, the Republicincludes the islands of Cargados Carajos,Rodrigues and the Agalega Islands. Thecountry covers an area of 1865km with 330kilometres of coastline. The island ofMauritius is part of the Mascarene Islands,together with the French island of Réunion200 km to the southwest and the island of44

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011European Regional Team MeetingThursday 18th November 2010Attendees:Irene Bohlin, Sweden, Wybe Dekker, TheNetherlands, Marcel van der Haagen, TheNetherlands, Stuart Green, United Kingdom,Angelika Haendel, Germany, LeonardoLa Pietra, Italy, Sara Marchisio, Italy,Darley Petersen, Denmark, Lorraine Nicholson,United Kingdom (Chair & Rapporteur)By Invitation: Sandy Fuller, Chief OperatingOfficer AHIMA, USA, (Part 1 only), DaniKolb, Director, AHIMA GSO, Brussels,Robert Nelson, Senior Vice President andManaging Director, Global OperationsThe Agenda included the following topics:Presentation about AHIMA's Global ServicesOffice (GSO):Rob Nelson and Dani Kolb provided informationabout the Roundtable Discussion tobe held at the GSO Offices in Brussels on19 th November 2010: Ilias Iakovidis, DGINFSO - Information Society and Media,ICT for Health Unit at the European Commission,has a strategic objective todevelop a skilled workforce in Europe includingthe HIM workforce.A new name – “IFHIMA Europe”In view of the change of name for IFHRO toIFHIMA (International Federation of HealthInformation Management Associations) theEuropean Regional Team agreed that theTeam will now be renamed IFHIMA Europe.Future Chairmanship of IFHIMA EuropeAll Team members asked LorraineNicholson to continue as Chair and sheagreed but requested that this should berevisited in three years time.IFHIMA Europe PosterThe existing IFHRO ERT Poster wasreviewed and changes and updates agreed.Darley Petersen will produce a revisedposter and circulate it to members.Next steps• Produce baseline Information on what ishappening in each European country andcomposition of the HIM workforce (e.g. atGP surgeries, in hospitals, in the community,clinical coding)• Undertake a pilot study in Italy and publishthe findings in the Italian HospitalJournal and to inform discussions onEuropean credentialling including credentialsfor Clinical Coders• Develop a strategy for IFHIMA Europe forthe next three years including a work planand new activities• Establish a connection to IFHIMA Europefrom the IFHIMA Home Page• Progress in Communications with otherEuropean National Associations includingBulgaria, Czech Republic, Lithuania,AustriaFrom left (front row): Darley Petersen, Angelika Handel, Irene Bohlin, Lorraine Nicholson, Sara MarchisioFrom left (back row): Marcel van der Haagen, Dr. Leonardo La Pietra, Stuart Green, Wybe Dekker45

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011CHIMA-CANADA(Canadian Health InformationManagement Association)Wins Bid to Host 17th IFHIMAInternational Congress in 2013!!The Canadian Health Information ManagementAssociation (CHIMA) is veryexcited and extremely proud to behosting the 17th IFHIMA InternationalCongress (IC) during May 13-15, 2013,in Montréal, Québec.CHIMA extends a sincere thank you to theIFHIMA Congress for offering us thismagnificent opportunity. Our support andprofessional relationship with IFHIMA isone we take very seriously and of whichwe are very proud.The success of our bid to host the 17thIFHIMA-IC was based on the interest andefforts of CHIMA, together with strong andrelentless support of Tourisme Montréaland the Palais des congrès de Montréal.In addition, our success was significantlyinfluenced by the valuable support of somany others such as, the National HealthInformation Management Associations ofCanada, Canadian Health InformationManagementProgramCoordinators/Council on Education andProfessional Practice, Government ofQuébec, The Canada Border ServicesAgency, Mayor of Montréal, plusnumerous members of CHIMA. Weextend a sincere and grateful thank you toall that helped us in our successful bid, atthe IFHIMA Congress Meeting in Milan,Italy in November 2010.The City:Montréal is the number one host city inNorth America for international meetings.Based on ICCA Statistics 2009, Montréalranks among the top convention cities inthe world. It offers easy access by air frommost European, Asian and US cities. Theinternational airport is conveniently locatedand is only 20 minutes away from 15,000downtown hotel rooms and the conventioncentre. All suggested hotels will be withinclose walking distance to the conventioncenter - The Palais des congrès deMontréal.The city of Montréal was founded nearly360 years ago and is the world’s secondlargest French-speaking city. It is a safecity with a blend of North American andEuropean influences appealing to all whovisit. Montréal is an exciting, vibrant citythat offers a unique bilingual(French/English) experience to delegatesand their families. Montréal is renownedworldwide for its quality of life, culturalvitality, warm welcome and internationalcaliber activities and tourist attractions. Allwill enjoy a one-of-a-kind journey toMontréal with wonderful pre and posttours/activities that will be planned.Montréal has so much to offer, see and doin terms of attractions; Old Montréal; artand entertainment (including a fertileground for circus acts and is home to theCirque du Soleil and Cirque Eloize);design; regional and international cuisine;shopping; and much more! Montréal is anexciting base for day or weekend trips tosome of Canada’s major attractions suchas; Québec City; The Laurentians andMont-Tremblant; Ottawa (National CapitalRegion); and Niagara Falls.As North America’s first City of Design,Montréal will be an excellent host city forthe 17th IFHIMA-International Congress.46

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011The Convention Centre and TourismeMontréal:The Palais des congrès de Montréalconvention centre offers meeting space onone floor with flexible room configurations,spacious design that is supported withstate of the art audiovisual technology andprofessional staff and technicians. ThePalais is a celebration of form and functionrendered in a mix of coloured glass andstone. The Palais and the city are as one,it is at the center of the action including theBusiness District, International Quarter,Old Montréal, Chinatown, Show Districtand Shopping! It is easily accessible andconveniently located downtown and isserved by efficient public transport. It islinked to hotels and arrival hubs.Tourisme Montréal have beeninstrumental in offering their expertise inso many ways including hotel accommodations.The accommodations that will beoffered to delegates come in all types andsizes with an excellent range of daily roomrates. All in all, offering a full variety ofaccommodations to suit the needs andtastes of delegates from the world over.And best of all they are all within closewalking distance to the Palais.Overall both the Palais and TourismeMontréal have gone above and beyond inproviding support and event planningexpertise to CHIMA. We look forward toand welcome their continued support inour efforts to ensure we host not just asuccessful event but rather anextraordinary one!The Program:The 17th IFHIMA-IC in Montréal will providenational and international delegatesalike with the opportunity to collaborate oncommon objectives; exchange ideas tosupport the HIM roles ineducation/training; data quality andstandards; patient safety; consumerhealth, privacy/confidentiality; and advancesin information technology (EHR);promote professional development; andsupport life-long learning.CHIMA will ensure the 17th IFHIMA-ICprogram offers delegates:• Strong learning and networking opportunitieswith HIM and Industry stakeholders/leadersincluding academics, researchers,advancement/technical andEHR innovators;• Opportunities to foster relationships andengage in exchange of knowledgewhich will benefit the HIM professioninternationally;• Overview and unique perspective of thepan-Canadian Electronic Health Record(EHR) initiative and• Importance of promotion and adoptionof health information management,practices and standards worldwide.CHIMA, the entire Canadian HIM communityand the city of Montréal areeager to welcome our internationalpeers! So start planning now to attendthe 17th IFHIMA-IC, in Montréal,Québec, Canada in 2013!!!47

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011Further photo impressions of the Milan congress48

49Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011

Issue Number 7 ■ April 2011*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Editorial Board:Cameron Barnes, AustraliaAngelika Haendel, GermanyMarci MacDonald, CanadaLorraine Nicholson, UKDarley Petersen, DenmarkMargaret Skurka, USAGraphic design & layoutAngelika HaendelPS: If you do not wish to receive further IFHRO/IFHIMA messages or editions of GlobalNews please let us know and we will remove you from the mailing list(petersen.darley@hotmail.com).Disclaimer:Contributions to Global News are welcomed from members and non-members of IFHRO and articles should betyped and sent by e-mail to the Editor, Angelika Haendel Angelika.Haendel@uk-erlangen.de for consideration forpublication. Responsibility for referencing in any article rests with the author. Readers should note that opinionsexpressed in articles in Global News are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position ofIFHRO.50