This course provides education on quality assessment and performance improvement in regards to health care information. Topics include utilization management, risk management, case management, regulatory quality monitoring requirements and outcomes measures and monitoring.
None
This course focuses on the following AHIMA competencies:
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
Specified on the course schedule/outline
| Letter Grade | Range | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| A | 90-100 | Excellent |
| B | 80-89 | Above Average |
| C | 70-79 | Average |
| D | 60-69 | Below Average |
| F | 0-59 | Failing |
| W | - | Withdrawal during weeks 1 - 7 |
| WF | - | Withdrawal failing after week 7 |
| NF | - | Failing - Not actively engaged |
For more details about the Grading System, please see the current catalog.
Students must be actively engaged in the course. For a definition of active engagement, please see the current catalog.
Cheating and plagiarism are serious offenses against the University’s academic integrity and are consequently strictly prohibited. All students must familiarize themselves with the University policy on Academic Integrity.
Penalties for cheating and plagiarism are described in the University policy on Academic Integrity in the catalog. They include failure of the assignment, failure for the course, or dismissal from the University. For the complete Cheating/Plagiarism policy, please see the current catalog.
Students who have disabilities that may impact their performance in this course should follow the process described under the heading Accommodations for the Disabled in the current catalog.
None
All courses in the HIM Program have a ten-day assignment cycle. Each week-'s work is made available Friday at 5 p.m. and remains available for ten days. The weekly assignments and discussions are due on the Sunday night of the week following the week they were made available, ten days later. For example, if the weekly assignments are made available at 5 p.m. on Friday, January 8, the completed assignments are due at midnight, on Sunday, January 17.
Note these two exceptions: Week 1 when the week's work is open from the first day of the quarter at 8 a.m. to Sunday at 11:55 p.m. and the last week when the final exam is available from Monday at 8 a.m. until Thursday at 11:55 p.m. All times listed are EST/EDT.Assignments DueView Dates
| Assignments | Due View Dates |
| Week 1 - Welcome/Quality Management Fundamentals | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 1 | Sunday |
| Discussion 1.1 - Introduce Yourself Discussion 1.2 - What is Quality of Care and why is it Important? |
Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 1.1 - Current State of Healthcare Quality | Sunday |
| Week 2 - Role of Policy in Advancing Quality/Characteristics of Complex Systems | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapters 2 and 3 | Sunday |
| Discussion 2.1 - Chapters 2 and 3 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 2.1 - Quality Initiatives Assignment 2.2 - Practice Exercise 3: Dynamic Complexity |
Sunday |
| Week 3 - Understanding System Behavior and Creating a Supportive Environment | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapters 4 and 5 | |
| Discussion 3.1 - Chapters 4 and 5 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 3.1 - Practice Exercise 2: The Manager-'s Role Assignment 3.2 - Exercise 5.1: Baldrige Performance Excellence Program Framework |
Sunday |
| Week 4 - Fostering Collaboration and Teamwork and Establishing System Direction | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 6 and 7 | Sunday |
| Discussion 4.1 - Chapters 6 and 7 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 4.1 - Exercise 6.1: Collaborative Teamwork and Continuous Improvement Assignment 4.2 - Exercise 7.1: Linking Goals to Results |
Sunday |
| Week 5 - Setting Improvement Goals in Complex Systems | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 8 | Sunday |
| Discussion 5.1 - Chapter 8 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 5.1 - Exercise 8.1: Linking Goals to Results | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Midterm Project | Thursday |
| Week 6 - Measuring Process and System Performance | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 9 | Sunday |
| Discussion 6.1 - Chapter 8 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 6.1 - Exercise 9.1: Evaluating Performance | Sunday |
| Week 7 - Using Data Analytics Techniques to Evaluate Performance | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 10 | Sunday |
| Discussion 7.1 - Chapter 10 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 7.1 - Exercise 10.1: Evaluating Graphic Presentations Assignment 7.2 - Exercise 10.2: Data Types and Graph Exercise |
Sunday |
| Week 8 - Designing and Implementing Improvements | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 11 | Sunday |
| Discussion 8.1 - Chapter 11 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 8.1 - Exercise 11.1: Rapid Cycle Improvement Exercise | Sunday |
| Week 9 - Using Improvement Teams and Tools | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 12 | Sunday |
| Discussion 9.1 - Chapter 10 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 9.1 - Exercise 12.1: Create a Project Charter Assignment 9.2 - Exercise 12.2: Create a Process Flowchart |
Sunday |
| Week 10 - Making Healthcare Safer for Patients | |
| Read Spath & Kelly, Chapter 13 | Sunday |
| Discussion 10.1 - Chapter 13 Reflective Discussion | Initial post due by Wednesday, follow up posts due by Sunday |
| Assignment 10.1 - Exercise 13.1: Identifying Types of Errors | Sunday |
| Week 11 - Finals Week | |
|
Final Project - Part I Final Project - Part II |
Thursday |
Grading Criteria
| Assignment | Weight |
| Discussions | 20% |
| Written Assignments/Assessments | 50% |
| Midterm Project | 15% |
| Final Project | 15% |
| Total | 100% |
Grades within the Learning Management System (LMS) are not official until the instructor reviews and finalizes all grades at the end of the quarter. Official grades are available Monday following the last week of the quarter.
Incomplete: A grade of incomplete may be granted to students who have suffered serious personal illness or critical emergency circumstances during the academic term, resulting in failure to complete all assignments by the end of the quarter. Documentation from a physician is required and must be attached to the petition for a temporary grade of incomplete. Please see the college catalog for additional information.
Late Policy
All assignments are due Sunday each week. Each student will be allowed two late assignments. The request to submit a late assignment must be received by the instructor no later than 12:00pm, Eastern on Monday after the week closes. The late assignment(s) will be due by Thursday, 11:55pm, Eastern and five points per day will be deducted. Any subsequent late assignment (assignment three forward) will be scored as a zero if not completed by Sunday each week. This policy only applies to assignments. Quizzes, exams and discussions are not eligible for late submissions.
Assignment Descriptions
Discussions
Each week, you are presented with one or more discussions questions related to the week's topic. You are expected to respond to the initial questions by Wednesday of that week, then provide meaningful comments to at least two other students' posts and to comments on your initial post by Sunday. The discussions are a means for class participation and help hone your analytical and communication skills. Initial discussion post require at least one scholarly reference in APA format. The textbook is a great starting point, but is not scholarly, therefore, it is not a valid reference for this course.
Note: All posts and replies must be original work, not copied/pasted from another source. Copying other students' posting and resubmitting them as your own is cheating an is treated as such.
Written Assignments
Weekly assignments include exercises from the Spath workbook and other written assignments. textbook and applying codes to particular situations.
Projects
Projects are given to ensure the course concepts are being understood.
Assignment Cycle
All courses in the HIM Program have a ten-day assignment cycle. Each week's work is made available Friday at 5:00 p.m. and will remain available for ten days. The weekly assignments, including lab exercises, and discussions are due on the Sunday night of the week following the week they were made available, ten days later. For example, if the weekly assignments are made available at 5:00 p.m. on Friday the completed assignments will be due at midnight on Sunday. Note these two exceptions: Week 1 when the week's work is open from the first day of the quarter at 8 a.m. to Sunday at 11:55 p.m. and the last week when the final exam is available from Monday at 8 a.m. until Thursday at 11:55 p.m. All times listed are EST/EDT.
All work must be submitted by the due date and time to qualify for the total points available. A penalty may be applied for late submissions.
Grade Explanation
| A Excellent 90-100% |
Full understanding of subject matter, capacity to analyze, demonstrate critical thinking, show evidence of creative thinking, familiar with literature and previous work in area, highly developed communication and presentation skills. Work is of outstanding quality. |
| B Good 80-89% |
Good comprehension of subject matter, evidence of critical and creative thought, familiarity with literature and previous work in subject area, competence in communication and presentation skills, but none of the above to the degree found in A category. Work is of very good quality. |
| C Average 70-79% |
Some understanding of subject matter and can assimilate and communicate basic aspects of the subject matter. Work is of satisfactory or adequate quality. |
| D Below Average 60-69% |
Minimal understanding of subject matter, poorly developed communication skills, inability to apply subject matter understanding in other contexts, and little evidence of critical or creative thinking. Work is of unsatisfactory but passable quality. |
| F Failing 0-59% |
Final Project - Begin work on Final Project Thursday, Week 11Inadequate understanding of subject matter, failed to complete course requirements, shows no demonstration of critical thought, very poor communication skills. Work is of unacceptable quality. |
Date of last review: Unknown