The Health Records Officers Registration Board of Nigeria (HRORBN) has called on health facilities and training institutions in the country to increase efforts towards the implementation of the International Classification of Diseases Eleventh Edition (ICD-11) and electronic health records in their organizations.
Registrar of the board, Alhaji Babagana Mustapha, made the call yesterday in Abuja during a two-day workshop organised by the board with the theme ‘ICD-11, e-Health records and the reviewed ND/HND curricula-Strategy for implementation’.
He said the successful implementation of ICD-11, e-health records and the reviewed curricula require strong commitment of all stakeholders in the health sector, particularly the Federal Ministry of Health, health information management (HIM) department of various hospitals, training institutions and the development partners.
He said the current edition (ICD-11) was adopted by the 72nd World Health Assembly in May 2019 and member states were expected to start recording and reporting disease entities using it from 1st January 2022.
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He said there is growing concern among health facilities in the country in respect to the progress and challenges regarding the implementation of e-health records and ICD-11 in Nigeria, as both are web-based packages that require user’s competencies in information Technology (IT).
He said only three facilities have started the implementation of ICD- 11, adding that the rapid growth of IT all over the world has made the training and practice of health information management (HIM) to evolve over time from analog to digital.
“The board as a regulator of HIM practice in Nigeria believes that the future of HIM and the country’s Health Information System (HIS) will continue to hinge on and be driven by the IT for fast, accurate, reliable, real-time and integrated health data management.
“Living in a digital area cannot be undermined, therefore, all hands must be on deck to put Nigeria’s Health Information System in a digital platform.
He said the board, in collaboration with the National Board for Technical Education, reviewed the National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) training curriculum in line with global best practices in March this year, adding that it is expected to commence in the next academic session.
The registrar also announced that the board has reviewed its organizational service charter, saying that it was aimed at guiding the organisation’s business conduct and to provide a solid base for customers’ demand to be served fairly, promptly and transparently in line with the goals for which SERVICOM was established.
The National Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer of SERVICOM Office, Nnenna Akajemeli, said the unveiling of the service charter means the health records board was very sensitive to the needs and expectations of the citizens who come to them for services.
She said the unveiling takes the organisation to the next level which is the implementation of promises in the charter, noting that it stands to gain qualitative data on all the services they render and can also use it to report to government on the essence of governance around health works as mandated to them by government.
Abubakar Magaji, the head of Research and Statistics of the board said the ICD 11 and e-health records are all web-based platforms that enable fast and easy access when dealing with information.