Health information management 2025. What is required to create a sustainable profession in the face of digital transformation?

The Health Information Management profession has a long history in Australia dating over 70 years. Traditionally, the profession has been associated with the two functions of paper-based medical records management and clinical coding. Now, a time of digital transformation and ongoing health reform requires the profession to strategically position itself from information technicians to information strategists, and demonstrate its ongoing important contribution to improving patient care and outcomes, and the effective management of health care.

The purpose of this report is to identify the major future challenges facing Health Information Management practitioners and academics. Three major questions to be examined are:

1. What are the forecast health reform and technological transformations that will impact on the Health Information Management profession?
2. What are the future responsibilities, skills, and knowledgebase requirements of the Health Information Management profession to contribute to high quality, safe patient care, and efficient organisational functioning?
3. What educational reform is necessary to prepare Health Information Management Practitioners for the future health and human service sectors, and to create sustainable faculties?

To examine each of these, an environmental scan of the literature on the future of health care, digital health, and education was undertaken. This environmental scan provides the support for the considerations raised in this report.