Job Redesign

“Job Redesign for Expanded HIM Functions”
By Elizabeth Layman (2011)

Health information professionals who work with health records know the significant step that technology has made in their department. In the past decade health records and medical billing has switched from being paper-base system to an electronic system. This new change has made the health care members work smarter with less stress. Nonetheless, these changes in the health information managers and directors have created the task of redesign work and jobs. To understand the greatness of this task we will be answering these four questions.

• How are the principles of goal setting applied in this case?
The principles of goal setting are applied thru SMART. SMART goals are

Measurable: These new roles and functions are emerging from the implementation of electronic health records and 29 new roles that are predicted to the implementation of electronic health records and meaningful use and future organizational information needs.
Attainable: The roles of privacy officer and RAC coordinator were added to the role of director of HIS Services. Thus, one employee wears many hats. This multiplicity of roles may result in fragmentation. Careful assessment of work and job is needed as these roles come on-line.
Relevant: Assessment of work and job is needed as these roles come on-line.
Timely: As the changes occur, managers and directors may assign tasks to employees. Over time, jobs may be significantly altered.
To attain this goal the health information managers and director have to work in job redesign, the set of tasks of a job is changed through addition, modification, or deletion. Therefore it may effect change at some or all of these levels, based upon their analysis of the indicators for realignment
• How are the principles of job enrichment applied in this

However, job enrichment may not be suitable for all employees, because no all employees are interested in having the control over how they work (Carpenter, et al., 2009). For this case the principle of job enrichment applies in the following way: (1) it creates a mechanism that allows coders to work from home; (2) it slow and gradual increases in the volume of e-mail; (3) the implementation of the Recovery Audit program under Section 302 of the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006.
• What were the outcomes of job enrichment in the HIS Departments?
The outcomes of job enrichment in the HIS Departments were: the workers take responsibility and control of their work. This gives them more satisfaction. Also, some jobs are sequential and, thus, the timing of these jobs is out of the workers' control and is dependent upon the timing and achievement of others. Jobs on the "boundaries" that interact with other departments and units are prone to role ambiguity. Where does one worker’s job stops and the other worker’s job begin. Yet, in the complex environment of health care organizations, these cross- boundary activities are common”.
• What was the impact of job enrichment on motivation and communication in the HIS