CHICAGO, May 2--Computer-assisted coding (CAC) can streamline the way that healthcare organizations gather data and submit claims for services. However, there are no standards in place to ensure that consistent, complete, and accurate data is being captured. On September 6 - 8, clinicians, health information management (HIM) professionals, health information technology system vendors, regulatory agencies and payers will gather in Arlington, VA, for the first collaborative effort to establish standards for development and maintenance of CAC applications.

"Uniform standards of metrics and validation are essential to enable software vendors to prepare their products for multiple targets such as CAC for billing, research, and post-market drug surveillance," says Keith Campbell, MD, PhD, vice
president and chief architect for Informatics, Inc. "These standards will also help prospective customers by providing apples-to-apples comparisons for evaluating CAC software's quality, accuracy, and for evaluating the defensibility of the claims they generate and their corresponding risk for generation of fraudulent claims."

The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and its Foundation of Research and Education (FORE) are sponsoring a workshop to develop recommendations for standards for CAC. The Computer-Assisted Coding Software Standards Workshop will include plenary sessions, a research forum, and topic-specific workgroups.

The workshop aims to:
-Develop a framework of specific standards for evaluating computer-assisted coding software.
-Align computer-assisted coding software standards so they are applicable for multiple and varied use.
-Understand the next steps for continued computer-assisted coding software standards
development and implementation.

"This workshop is important to the scientific community in two significant ways. First, it will begin to establish accepted standards and methodologies for researchers and developers working in this area," states Susan Fenton, MBA, RHIA, practice leadership manager at AHIMA. "Second, much of current medical science is built on the ability to accurately represent data. However, historical weak links have been the code sets and the accuracy with which they are deployed. This conference is a much-needed start to strengthening those links."

AHIMA/FORE is currently soliciting papers on research related to CAC software evaluation and methodologies, gold standard selection, or development. The submission deadline is May 26, 2006. Submissions will be peer-reviewed and authors will be notified of acceptance decisions no later then July 1, 2006. For details and to complete the online submission process, visit
www.ahima.org/abstracts/index.asp.

"Computer-assisted coding is the logical next-step toward efficient and accurate healthcare coding," adds Lee Min Lau, M.D., Ph.D., medical informaticist for 3M Health Information Systems. "This timely workshop will set the stage for
computer-assisted coding standards that will benefit the entire industry."

For more information about Computer-Assisted Coding Software Standards Workshop, including the agenda and registration, visit www.ahima.org/meetings/computerassistcodeindex.asp.

The workshop is supported in part by grants to FORE from 3M Health Information Systems, CodeRyte, and MedQuist.

FORE provides financial and intellectual resources to sustain and recognize continuous innovation and advances in health information management (HIM) for the betterment of the profession, healthcare, and the public. Through research, education, and public awareness initiatives, the Foundation ensures the vitality, visibility, and viability of the HIM profession. For more information, visit
www.ahima.org/fore.

AHIMA is the premier association of HIM professionals. AHIMA's 50,000 members are dedicated to the effective management of personal health information needed to deliver quality health care to the public. Founded in 1928 to improve the quality of medical records, AHIMA is committed to advancing the HIM profession in an increasingly electronic and global environment through leadership in advocacy, education, certification, and lifelong learning. For more information about the Association, go to www.ahima.org.