Welcome to the Health Information Management (HIM) Department at Springfield Clinic. Our goal for this web site is to provide access to comprehensive information about patient records and privacy concerns. Patients, insurance companies, attorneys, business associates, and others can use this site to access forms, procedures, and other information. We also meet with patients to discuss their privacy issues and concerns, as well as assist with accessing forms, requesting a change to their medical record, and to review health/billing records.
Some patients want confidential communications and ask us to call only their cell phone, or to mail information to an alternate address. Some may inquire as to where any records were released and to whom.
There are many other issues relating to the release of medical information. Often release of information is granted by the patient to insurance companies when applying for new policies or coverage. Other providers may need your information if you move out of the area. Attorneys may request information for legal matters.
The HIM Department also has important roles internally to work with the various medical departments in addressing patient confidentiality and privacy concerns. These may include: record requests, transfer of records, disability forms, subpoenas, insurance applications, and other requests. Training is a high priority within Springfield Clinic to ensure that employees are knowledgeable and in compliance with federal and state privacy regulations.
There are four organizational silos or areas of control:
Privacy. This involves how health information can be released, what can be accessed, situational and social privacy issues with patients, privacy compliance requirements, patient rights and privacy practices policies.
Correspondence. We process requests for external release of information. There are nine work types that we process for provider offices: subpoenas for records, attorney requests, employer workers compensation requests, insurance applications (health and life), commercial disability forms (loan claims), Department of Rehabilitation Services, Federal Bureau of Disability Determination Services, release to patient and other provider, and employer disability forms. Our department is also the custodian for the legal health record and is called upon to testify when records are required in court.
Electronic Health Record. Our department processes document imaging for all clinical offices (except Occupational Medicine), merges and unmerges electronic patient records, assigns placement/retention/signature authority of new chart forms, maintains and defines the legal health record.
Legacy. Our department monitors the medical MRN record number assignments, merges and unmerges paper based records, integrates new merger practice records, manage x-ray film files, manages Springfield Clinic’s couriers, messengers, including interoffice and postal mail.
Springfield Clinic is fully accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) and received straight “A's” for our electronic record associated with those operations.
Please check out our web pages for convenient access to forms, procedures, and other useful information. Please contact us if you have questions or if you need any assistance.