As part of the MRO webinar series this year, I recently presented HIM Workforce Training: Developing an Engaged Team. During this presentation, I discussed best practices for training and retaining your employees based on the evolving health information management (HIM) landscape which demands new skill sets and coping with the new normal for the workforce.
Health Information Management: New Hire Checklist
Since the first step of an employee’s journey with a company is the onboarding process, using a new-hire checklist is critical. This document should include facility orientation topics, a job description, policies and procedures, systems, and any important forms. Other areas of consideration throughout the employee’s entire journey with the company are HIPAA, compliance, customer service, department functions and record lifecycles.
Lesson Plans Through Video and Slides
Creating lesson plans based on specific employee roles is an easy way to stay organized and keep a record of what employees are learning. For example, a lesson plan on “The Medical Record” designed to cover topics such as encounters, common documents, corrections and amendments, confidentiality and legal issues, and legal health record versus designated record set can be a good start for an overview of HIM topics. Switching it up with slides, documents, and videos across categories helps to keep the employees engaged and interested in the content. When confronted with a decision about how to teach a topic, always choose a video because people enjoy them the most. Also, don’t forget to quiz your employees along the way to make sure they retain what they are learning.
Training Video Content on HIM and ROI
I encourage you and your staff members to create your own videos. If you have an employee expert on a topic, engage them to produce a video for you. It engages the team and they will feel connected through their coworker. Other organizations, such as OCR and AHIOS, provide excellent video content. It’s a good idea to continually check such sites for updated training videos that you can use for your own workforce. Many videos covering HIM topics, especially customer service, are available on YouTube.
Create Relatable Stories for More Memorable Lessons
When teaching employees about important topics, telling a story that is easily remembered can be helpful. For example, to drive the point about HIPAA and confidentiality, talk about finding out your neighbor had a baby. If your neighbor’s husband tells you she had a baby, you can tell the world, because her husband told you directly. If you find out your neighbor had a baby because you see her name on the hospital admissions list, then you cannot share that information because you learned it through your job, making it confidential per HIPAA. I find that employees are more likely to remember a simple yet impactful story.
Mixing up the trainings with games, quizzes, and anything fun is a good way to engage employees to enjoy learning. For example, have employees play a security game where a hacker is trying to get to an unsecured computer before they do, or perhaps play HIPAA Jeopardy.
Stronger Training Programs for Stronger Future Leaders
As employees continue to work for your organization, it is important to create training programs that further develop their skills. These programs will vary depending on specific job functions. Create plans, especially leadership development plans, to grow your future leaders.
During the webinar presentation, I provided valuable videos and resources that can be used for employee development and engagement activities. To get the most from these valuable resources, I encourage you to request the playback along with the slides.
