AHIMA promotes PHR use

The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) is throwing its weight behind the PHR concept. AHIMA has set up a website, myPHR.com, selling consumers on the benefits of compiling a personal health record. It's also conducting a public awareness campaign targeting senior citizens, parents raising young children, home caregivers and patients with chronic conditions. It's likely the campaign will have some impact on its own constituency of 50,000 HIM professionals, as well. After all, there's still not widespread agreement as to what a PHR should actually contain or how it should be accessed; such a campaign should notch up the level of discussion in the HIM circles a bit.

The myPHR.com site includes a "guided tour" of the topic, explaining how stakeholders like insurance companies and providers compile health information and spelling out why leaders believe that consumers should build a record of their own. It also includes a database of PHR tools offered by vendors, though it doesn't endorse any particular technology.

To find out more about the campaign:
- read this Modern Healthcare article

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