What Is the Function and Responsibility of a Medical Records Department at a Hospital?
The primary functions of a medical records department include designing patient information, assisting hospital medical staff and creating informative statistical reports. Other responsibilities include the maintenance of death and birth registers for the perusal of relevant government agencies, and keeping track of communicable diseases, according to government regulations.
The medical records department handles the security and maintenance of all electronic and written medical records of a health facility. It also ensures that all the information available in the records is complete, accurate and only available to personnel that have authorized access. The department indexes medical records, according to the hospital’s prescribed standard order. It maintains and preserves patient medical records including diagnostic reports in a scientific manner.
A hospital’s medical records department develops and maintains an informational base as well as a mechanism for the provision of statistical data. It also liaises with concerned agencies or departments to submit regular reports on the activities of the entire hospital. Personnel in the medical records department control the movement of patient files. The intentions are to achieve a unit record system, protect any unauthorized access and ensure utmost confidentiality for the legal interests of the patients, physicians, and the hospital. The department handles carrying out all the admitting procedures for any patients that require hospitalization.
