| Course | HIM 440 Management of Health Information Services |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 8 |
| Paper type | undergraduate closing discussion post reflecting on leading change |
| Length | About 340 words, 3 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Southern New Hampshire University |
| Program | BS Health Information Management |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for HIM 440 Module 8
Module Eight Discussion
What the Coders Taught Me
In week one I described announcing a coding productivity standard at Kettle Creek Medical Center and losing the room. Last week, the standard went into effect. The difference is that three coders, including one who works from home, spent a month with me reviewing our own data and proposed measures by case type. Nobody asked whether we were outsourcing them this time. One of the three even presented the measures at the staff meeting, which carried more weight than anything I could have said. Looking back over the term, I see three lessons I would give my week-one self.
First, measure before prescribing. I assumed the backlog meant slow coders, but the process map showed 42 minutes of work inside a six-day journey, most of it waiting on scanning, summaries and queries. Had I pushed the standard through, coders would have worked faster on a problem that was mostly not theirs.
Second, involve the people who do the work. The review by Harrison et al. (2021) suggests that change frameworks do better in hospitals when paired with hands-on improvement work that brings staff in, and our planning team's coder and hospitalist caught problems I would have missed, such as deficiencies assigned to the wrong physicians.
Third, test small before spreading. Taylor et al. (2014) found that many health care projects called a single large rollout a plan-do-study-act cycle and learned little from it. Our one-unit scanning test failed in its first week because unit clerks had no time at shift change, and we fixed that before it reached every floor. Feedback worked the same way: Ivers et al. (2012) found that feedback with clear targets and repeated reports tends to work better, and weekly physician lists have cut discharge summary delays on the two pilot services.
I still have a lot to learn. Our turnover will not fall until the pay review is approved, and no plan fixes that alone. For classmates: which of these three lessons do you think you will need first in your own career, and why?
References
Harrison, R., Fischer, S., Walpola, R. L., Chauhan, A., Babalola, T., Mears, S., & Le-Dao, H. (2021). Where do models for change management, improvement and implementation meet? A systematic review of the applications of change management models in healthcare. Journal of Healthcare Leadership, 13, 85-108. https://doi.org/10.2147/JHL.S289176
Ivers, N., Jamtvedt, G., Flottorp, S., Young, J. M., Odgaard-Jensen, J., French, S. D., O'Brien, M. A., Johansen, M., Grimshaw, J., & Oxman, A. D. (2012). Audit and feedback: Effects on professional practice and healthcare outcomes. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (6), Article CD000259. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD000259.pub3
Taylor, M. J., McNicholas, C., Nicolay, C., Darzi, A., Bell, D., & Reed, J. E. (2014). Systematic review of the application of the plan-do-study-act method to improve quality in healthcare. BMJ Quality & Safety, 23(4), 290-298. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjqs-2013-001862
What the HIM 440 Module 8 instructions ask for
The last HIM 440 discussion invites reflection on what you learned about managing health information services and leading change. HIM 440 instructors generally want about a page that leans on a handful of journal articles in APA 7, plus replies. Tie the reflection to specific work from the term, such as a benchmark, a process map or your strategic plan, rather than listing topics covered. Name a small number of lessons, show how each played out with concrete details and support them with research. Be honest about what remains unsolved, because reflection is more credible when it admits limits. Close by inviting peers to say how the lessons might play out in the jobs they hold or want.
How this HIM 440 Module 8 discussion example is built
The post returns to the week-one productivity standard at Kettle Creek Medical Center, which now works because three coders helped design it. Three lessons follow. Measuring first revealed that most of a six-day backlog was waiting, not coding. Involving staff, supported by Harrison and colleagues, surfaced misassigned deficiencies. Testing small, as Taylor and colleagues urge, caught a scanning problem on one unit, while Ivers and colleagues explain why weekly physician lists with targets cut summary delays. The writer admits that turnover depends on a pay review still pending and asks classmates which lesson they will need first in HIM 440 and beyond. Every lesson is tied to a specific event from the term.
Where the HIM 440 Module 8 rubric puts the points
Closing posts in HIM 440 are commonly assessed on meaningful reflection tied to course work, clear lessons supported by specific examples and research, honesty about limits, APA 7 citations and engagement with peers. Standout posts show change over the term, often by returning to an early experience and describing a different outcome. Graders reward lessons stated as actions a manager can take rather than general values. A question that asks classmates to apply the lessons to their own careers keeps the discussion forward-looking, and a short honest limit, which suits the last week of a management course that prepares students to supervise real departments.
HIM 440 Module 8 help: the mistakes that cost points
Final posts in HIM 440 slip when they summarize the syllabus, offer lessons without examples, cite sources that do not match the lesson or claim every problem is solved. Some drafts also skip the question for classmates. If your prompt asks for a different angle, such as ethics in management, leading remote teams or career goals in health information, send it along with a short note on the projects you completed, so the reflection draws on your own work. Share reply rules too, including how many peers you must answer. HIM 440 posts we write keep this shape: a story revisited, a few lessons with evidence, honest limits and a question.
Get HIM 440 Module 8 written to your instructions
Share the HIM 440 Module 8 discussion prompt with a short note on your term's projects. You will get a post that revisits an early experience, draws a few lessons with evidence, admits what is unfinished and asks peers a forward-looking question, ready in 24 to 48 hours and free the first time. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Southern New Hampshire University document.
More HIM 440 papers and related BS Health Information Management samples
- HIM 440 Module 1 Discussion: The HIM Manager's Role in Leading Change
- HIM 440 Module 2 Current Issues Short Paper: Staffing, Relationships, Productivity and Compliance
- HIM 440 Module 3 Final Project Milestone One: Initiation, Preparation and Performance Benchmarks
- HIM 440 Module 4 Work Redesign Short Paper: Process Maps and Lean Methods for Coding and Scanning
- HIM 440 Module 5 Final Project Milestone Two: A Process Improvement Plan for Unbilled Accounts
- HIM 440 Module 6 Accreditation Readiness Short Paper: Record Review, Tracers and Survey Preparation
- HIM 440 Module 7 Final Project: A Strategic Plan for the Health Information Department
- HIM 200 Module 3 Interoperability Short Paper: Health Information Exchange, FHIR and Information Blocking
- HIM 215 Module 2 ICD-10-CM Short Paper: Structure, Conventions and Sequencing With Worked Examples
- HIM 360 Module 7 Project Two: A Documentation Integrity Improvement Plan
- HIM 400 Module 6 Data Sharing Short Paper: Exchange, Patient Access and Information Blocking
HIM 440 Module 8 questions, answered
Where can I find a free HIM 440 Module 8 Discussion sample?
The complete HIM 440 Module 8 post appears here: a closing reflection on leading a health information department through change, with three lessons.
What lessons about leading change apply to HIM managers?
Measure before prescribing, involve the people who do the work and test changes on a small scale before spreading them.
Why test changes on one unit first?
Small tests reveal problems, such as timing or workload, that can be fixed before a change affects the whole organization.
How should a reflection post use research?
Each source should support a specific lesson or example, not simply appear in the reference list.
Should a reflection admit unsolved problems?
Yes. Honest limits make the reflection more credible and show realistic management judgment.