For nearly a century, AHIMA has helped improve health record quality by taking a leadership role in the effective management of health data and information and delivering quality healthcare to the public.
AHIMA is a global nonprofit association of health information (HI) professionals. AHIMA represents professionals who work with health data for more than one billion patient visits each year. AHIMA’s mission of empowering people to impact health drives our members and credentialed HI professionals to ensure that health information is accurate, complete, and available to patients and providers. Our leaders work at the intersection of healthcare, technology, and business, and are found in data integrity and information privacy job functions worldwide.
AHIMA’s Mission
Empowering people to impact health
AHIMA’s Vision
A world where trusted information transforms health and healthcare by connecting people, systems, and ideas
We believe:
- health information is the most powerful currency for change in the healthcare ecosystem
- our mission drives us to create lasting change in the health of the individuals, organizations, and societies around the globe
- consumers of healthcare should have access and control over how their data is accessed, exchanged, and used
- people will always be central in harnessing the power of information to tear down barriers to better health
Read AHIMA’s 2020-2023 Enterprise Strategic Plan.
AHIMA's Transformation Values
Outcome focused, Agility, Quality, Audience driven
AHIMA is taking the lead in the advancement and use of health data and information management for the delivery of quality healthcare worldwide. AHIMA members stay one step ahead through AHIMA’s cutting-edge programs and professional development opportunities, including comprehensive continuing education.
AHIMA keeps HIM professionals abreast of the healthcare industry through resources to improve their knowledge, skills, and abilities. Some of AHIMA’s offering include:
- Text books
- Credentials
- Live meetings
- Online Education
- The Journal of AHIMA
- The HIM Body of Knowledge (BoK)
- Engage Communities
- Newsletters
- E-Alerts
In addition to providing resources, AHIMA actively advocates for the HIM profession, serves as a thought leader in the world of HIM, is one of the four cooperating parties responsible for the ICD-10 coding guidelines, and has led the development of information governance principles for healthcare.
AHIMA members affect the quality of patient information and patient care at every touchpoint in the healthcare delivery cycle. Our members perform diverse roles in healthcare and are employed in a variety of work settings, including hospitals, physician offices, ambulatory care facilities, managed care facilities, long-term care facilities, consulting firms, information system vendors, colleges and universities, insurance providers, pharmaceutical companies, rehabilitation centers, and other venues.
Become an AHIMA member now.
AHIMA traces its history back to 1928 when the American College of Surgeons established the Association of Record Librarians of North America (ARLNA) to "elevate the standards of clinical records in hospitals and other medical institutions." This farsighted recognition of the importance of medical record quality to patient care and research underlies the organization today.
Since its formation, the organization known now as AHIMA has undergone several name changes that reflect the evolution of the profession. In 1938 the Association changed its name to the American Association of Medical Record Librarians (AAMRL) for a more succinct representation of the membership. AAMRL moved forward with the creation of standards and regulations that established its members as medical record experts. When the Association became the American Medical Record Association in 1970, medical record professionals had increased their involvement in hospitals, community health centers, and to other health service facilities outside the hospital. They had also begun to play a critical role at their institutions in the administration of federal programs such as Medicare.
As the healthcare industry underwent restructuring and decision-making became increasingly driven by data, the Association changed its name in 1991 to the American Health Information Management Association. Its current name captures the expanded scope of clinical data beyond the single hospital medical record to health information comprising the entire continuum of care.
Learn more about the history of the association and view AHIMA's timeline.
Sharpen your focus on Ethics. Update yourself on the Code of Ethics and 2 sets of Standards. Complete the Ethics Self Assessment and review the Case Studies.
The AHIMA Code of Ethics Principles and Guidelines are intended to serve as a professional ethics guide for AHIMA members, and credentialed professionals who are not members. The Code provides the ethical obligations of AHIMA members and credentialed non-members, as well as the 13 principles that are the foundation of AHIMA’s Code of Ethics. After reading the Code of Ethics Principles and Guidelines, you should be able to interpret and know how to use them.
The AHIMA Code of Ethics applies to AHIMA members and credentialed HIM professionals who are not members.
If you believe an AHIMA member or an AHIMA member who is also a credential holder has violated the Code of Ethics, you may file a complaint with AHIMA Profession Governance. Please see the Policy and Procedures for Disciplinary Review and Appeal for filing a complaint. A completed Ethics Complaint Form must be submitted along with supporting documentation to:
AHIMA
Professional Ethics Committee
233 N. Michigan Ave, 21st Floor
Chicago, IL 60601
volunteer.services@ahima.org
If you believe an AHIMA credentialed professional has violated the Code of Ethics, you may file a complaint with CCHIIM. Please see the CCHIIM Policy for filing a complaint. A completed Ethics Complaint Form must be submitted along with supporting documentation to:
AHIMA
CCHIIM- Certification Department
233 N. Michigan Ave, 21st Floor
Chicago, IL 60601
cchiim@ahima.org
If you believe an AHIMA credentialed professional who is also an AHIMA member has violated the Code of Ethics, you may file a complaint with either AHIMA Profession Governance or CCHIIM. A completed Ethics Complaint Form must be submitted along with supporting documentation to the AHIMA Professional Ethics Committee or CCHIIM.
Standards of Ethical Coding
Health information coding is one of HIM’s core functions. Due to the complex regulatory requirements affecting the coding process, coding professionals are frequently faced with ethical challenges. The AHIMA Standards of Ethical Coding are intended to:
- assist coding professionals and managers in decision-making
- outline expectations for making ethical decisions in the workplace
- demonstrate coding professionals’ commitment to integrity during the coding process, regardless of the purpose for which codes are being reported
The Standards are relevant to all coding professionals and those managing the coding function, regardless of healthcare setting or AHIMA membership status.
Review the AHIMA Standards of Ethical Coding, which was revised and approved by the House of Delegates in December, 2016.
Standards for Clinical Documentation Improvement Professionals
The AHIMA Ethical Standards for Clinical Documentation Improvement Professionals are intended to assist in decision-making processes and actions, outline expectations for making ethical decisions in the workplace, and demonstrate the professionals' commitment to integrity. They are relevant to all clinical documentation improvement professionals and those who manage the clinical documentation improvement (CDI) function, regardless of the healthcare setting in which they work, or whether they are AHIMA members or nonmembers.