RHIA Domain 5 Exam Questions
with Revised Answers
Which of the following best describes an example of a consumer engagement activity in
which HIM professionals might engage?
a. Coding roundtables
b. Chargemaster updates
c. Patient portal training
d. New employee orientation - Answer-C
Consumer engagement activities both educate the consumer and make them more
responsible for their personal health and health information. Patient portal training helps
the consumer to better manage their own health information (Kelly and Greenstone
2020, 208-209).
Which one of the following statements best reflects the current strategic planning
environment?
a. The focus of strategic planning has become narrower in scope.
b. Because strategic planning is so complex, it requires fairly complex database
support.
c. Strategic plans must project three to five years into the future if they are to be
effective.
d. Because the environment is volatile, strategic planning must be fluid and open to
change. - Answer-D
The rapidly changing landscape in healthcare requires the strategic planning process be
open to change to achieve the vision and strategy (McClernon 2020, 920).
Western States Medical Center consistently sends their HIM staff to AHIMA's
component state association annual conference in an effort to provide continuing
education and training for these employees. How does this investment in continuing
education by Western States Medical Center support their commitment to quality?
a. By providing a culture of competence through staff development and learning
b. By allowing employees the opportunity to meet people from other organizations
c. By providing employees time away from the department
d. By allowing the organization to spend down its resources - Answer-A
Organizations that embrace ongoing performance improvement do so because their
leaders foster a culture of competence through staff self-development and lifelong
learning. The competitive advantage for healthcare organizations today lies in their
intellectual capital and organizational effectiveness (Shaw and Carter 2019, 273).
Disciplinary action:
,a. Should vary based on to whom the employee reports
b. Should be documented at each step in the process
c. Should be taken whenever there is a performance problem
d. Cannot be taken when employees are unionized - Answer-B
Regardless of the counseling and disciplinary actions mandated by the organization,
managers should take some key steps of their own such as documenting the steps
taken to improve performance (LeBlanc 2020, 712).
Pressed for time, Sara hired a new release of information clerk without doing a
reference check. When the new clerk committed a violation of patient confidentiality, it
came to light that she had committed similar violations at her previous place of
employment. By not checking the clerk's references, Sara has opened the hospital to
charge of:
a. Discrimination
b. Harassment
c. Negligent hiring
d. Overcompensation - Answer-C
A charge of negligent hiring can be made if a current employee commits a serious
offense and it can be shown that the organization should have known about the
employee's tendencies had a thorough background check been done prior to hiring
(Kelly and Greenstone 2020, 162).
An accrediting agency's published rules, which serve as the basis for comparative
assessment during the review or survey process, are called:
a. Accreditation controls
b. Accreditation guides
c. Accreditation policies
d. Accreditation standards - Answer-D
Accreditation approval is based on whether the organization voluntarily meets a set of
accreditation standards developed by the accreditation agency that serve as the basis
for comparative assessment during the review or survey process and confirm the quality
of the services that healthcare organizations provide (Shaw and Carter 2020, 330).
Caroline is interviewing candidates for a supervisor of release of information position.
She asks each candidate to explain how they would prepare a record in answer to a
subpoena. This is what type of interview question?
a. Behavior
b. Job knowledge
c. Situational
d. Work requirement - Answer-B
Job-knowledge questions are intended to determine if the applicant knows how to do
the job (Kelly and Greenstone 2020, 164).
,Which of the following is a true statement about business process reengineering?
a. It is intended to make small incremental changes to improve a process.
b. It seeks to reevaluate and redesign organizational processes to make dramatic
performance improvements.
c. It implies making few changes to achieve significant improvements in cost, quality,
service, and speed.
d. Its main focus is to reduce services. - Answer-B
In reengineering, the entire manner and purpose of a work process is questioned. The
goal is to achieve the desired process outcome in the most effective and efficient
manner possible. The results expected from reengineering efforts include increased
productivity, decreased costs, improved quality, maximized revenue, and more satisfied
customers. However, it should be clearly understood that the main focus is on reducing
costs (Oachs 2020, 791).
Monitoring incidents of patients' falls can be used to measure effectiveness of hospital
staff. This type of indicator would be considered a(n):
a. Employee measure
b. Clinical measure
c. Human resource measure
d. Process measure - Answer-B
There must be at least two clinical measures and two human resources indicators for
each patient population, defined by internal performance improvement activities. At a
minimum, the organization identifies no fewer than two inpatient care areas for which
staffing effectiveness data are collected. Identified performance measures relate to
processes appropriate to the care and services provided and to problem-prone areas
experienced in the past (for example, infection rates or incidences of patient falls). The
rationale for indicator selection is based on relevance and sensitivity to each patient
area where staffing is planned (Shaw and Carter 2019, 273).
The incidence of postoperative wound infections occurring in ORIF procedures in which
antibiotics were and were not utilized is an example of which type of performance
measure?
a. Data measure
b. Process measure
c. Outcome measure
d. System measure - Answer-C
Performance measurement in healthcare provides an indication of an organization's
performance in relation to a specified process or outcome. An outcome measure may
be the effect of care, treatment, or services on a customer (Shaw and Carter 2019, 41).
An implementation plan is developed to ensure successful execution and includes:
a. Strategies, goals, and objectives
, b. Vision, mission, and values
c. External and internal assessments
d. Timelines, resource needs, and vision - Answer-A
The implementation plan outlines each strategy and then details how to achieve the
strategy using goals and objectives (McClernon 2020, 933-934).
The time required to recoup the cost of an investment is called the:
a. Accounting rate of return
b. Budget cycle
c. Payback period
d. Depreciation - Answer-C
The payback period is the time required to recoup the cost of an investment. Mortgage
refinancing analysis frequently uses the concept of payback period. Mortgage
refinancing is considered when interest rates have dropped. Refinancing may require
up-front interest payments and called points as well as a variety of administrative costs.
In this example, the payback period is the time it takes for the savings in interest to
equal the cost of the refinancing (Revoir 2020, 839).
In preparation for the implementation of an electronic health record (EHR), Ruth spends
most of her training time in the EHR test system clicking through screens and
developing workflows. Ruth is most likely what type of sensory learner?
a. Auditory
b. Visual
c. Tactile
d. Kinesthetic - Answer-D
Kinesthetic learners favor a hands-on approach to learning so they can feel and
manipulate the material. This may involve clicking through computer screens rather than
reading an instruction manual (Kelly and Greenstone 2020, 209).
Community Hospital is reviewing its job descriptions and notices that some job
descriptions for clinical positions include a reference to the potential risks of exposure to
blood-borne pathogens while others do not. The human resource manager insists that
all job descriptions should include this language. Why is this important to include?
a. It is not important, and the human resource manager is overstepping his or her role.
b. Community Hospital needs to update job descriptions to meet HIPAA requirements.
c. Community Hospital needs to define the level of risk for infection from blood-borne
pathogens for its employees.
d. Facilities are required to report incidences of HIV. - Answer-C
Blood-borne pathogens, such as HIV and hepatitis B and C, are transported through
contact with infected body fluids such as blood, semen, and vomitus. Each facility
should define the employee level of risk for infection associated with their job
classification and define the proper precautions needed to prevent exposure. Most
