Code of Ethics

Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity

Code of Ethics

PREAMBLE

This Code of Ethics of the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (“AHDI“) sets forth standards of conduct and ethical principles for healthcare documentation professionals that all members of AHDI and individuals who hold the Registered Healthcare Documentation Specialist (“RHDS”), Certified Medical Transcriptionist (“CMT“)/Certified Healthcare Documentation Specialist (“CHDS”) or other AHDI certified training program credential are expected to follow. Healthcare documentation professionals are vigilant advocates for quality patient documentation and adhere to the highest privacy and security provisions. We uphold moral and legal rights of patients, safeguard patient privacy, and collaborate with healthcare providers to ensure patient safety, public health, and quality of care to the fullest extent possible, through the practice of healthcare documentation.

AHDI is responsible for expressing the values and ethics of the profession and for encouraging its members to function in accordance with these values and ethics, especially all individuals who hold the RHDS, CMT/CHDS or other AHDI certified training program credential (“certificants“). AHDI members and certificants are aware that it is by our standards of conduct and professionalism that the entire profession of healthcare documentation is evaluated. We conduct ourselves in the practice of our profession to bring dignity and honor to ourselves and to the profession of healthcare documentation as medical language specialists.

Instances may arise when members’ and certificants’ ethical obligations may appear to conflict with relevant laws and regulations. When such conflicts occur, members and certificants must make reasonable efforts to resolve the conflict in a manner that is consistent with the values, principles, and standards expressed in this code of ethics. Violation of this code of ethics does not necessarily imply legal liability or violation of the law. A determination that the law has been violated can be made only in the context of legal, judicial and/or administrative proceedings. Moreover, if this code of ethics establishes a higher standard of conduct than that required by law, members and certificants are expected to meet the higher ethical standard.

Members and certificants understand that membership and/or certification may be revoked by AHDI for failure to act in accordance with the provisions of the AHDI Code of Ethics.

PRINCIPLES AND STANDARDS

AHDI members and healthcare documentation professionals:

1. Maintain confidentiality of all patient information including but not limited to peer review, quality improvement, and risk management protocols with a special effort to maintain data security in electronic communications.
2. Implement and maintain standards of professional healthcare documentation practice.
3. Respect the rights and dignity of all individuals.
4. Continue professional growth by enhancing knowledge and skills, including continuing education, networking with colleagues, professional reading, certification, and advocating for the profession and the industry.
5. Strive to provide accurate and timely information.
6. Exercise integrity in professional practices including work or professional experience, credentials, and affiliations.
7. Conduct business in accordance with ethical privacy and security practices, ethical workplace practices, ethical billing practices, ethical marketing practices, ethical workforce classification practices, and ethical workforce compensation practices.
8. Comply with all laws, regulations, and standards governing the practice of healthcare documentation including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act.
9. Foster environments of employment that facilitate integrity, professionalism, and protection of health information.
10. Strive to advance the goals and purposes of AHDI and work for the advancement and good of the profession while refraining from any activity detrimental to the profession.