Review of HIMAP (Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines)

What is the Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines (HIMAP)?

The culture of care is intrinsic in the Filipino people, so much so that the Philippine economy benefits greatly from it. This is evidenced by how Filipinos around the world excel in the field of healthcare, but it can also be seen in how the country maintains its position as a preferred destination for Healthcare Information Management Services (HIMS).

HIMS continues to be one of the top-performing and employment-generating sectors of the country’s information technology and business process management (IT-BPM) industry. It employs over 120,000 full-time employees who are involved in managing and processing healthcare data.

These jobs deal with analytics, fraud management, and claims settlement and management. The resulting information is utilized in clinics, doctors’ offices, hospitals, insurance companies, and other organizations that provide healthcare-related services.

The Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines, or HIMAP, is a collective body that voices the concerns and addresses the needs of this growing and evolving IT-BPM industry sector.

About HIMAP

The Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines represents the Philippine HIMS sector in the global market, its brands, and markets the Philippines as a preferred outsourcing destination for this particular IT-BPM sector.

To make this vision a reality, the HIMAP serves as an active proponent of plans, programs, and projects that aim to develop and nurture best practices in people, technology, and processes related to healthcare information management services.

By adhering to the highest standard of healthcare documentation services in the global market and by helping create an environment where members are empowered to achieve the highest professional standards in the industry, the organization believes that it can contribute to the economic growth of the country.

Looking back on HIMAP’s history

Throughout its history, the HIMAP has gone through a lot of changes, particularly in its name. The organization was first registered with the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission on October 16, 2003, under the name Medical Transcription Industry Association of the Philippines, Inc. or MTIAPI.

During this period, the MTIAPI brought together distinguished and active players in the healthcare information management documentation outsourcing industry and united them under a common goal: to serve the needs of HIMS organizations, training centers, and vendors.

As a reflection of the tremendous growth of the industry it represents, MTIAPI changed its name to Healthcare Information Management Outsourcing Association of the Philippines or HIMOAP in August 2010.

Later, the word “outsourcing” was taken out of the organization’s name, and the group was finally called the Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines.

HIMAP programs, events, and projects

The HIMAP hosts various events and activities that cater to the needs of HIMS centers, training providers, and vendors and suppliers related to the industry. These include:

Healthcare Information Management Services Conference (HIMSCON)

Every year, the HIMAP holds the Healthcare Information Management Services Conference (HIMSCON). HIMSCON gathers HIMS centers, training institutions, vendors, and the larger business community in the country.

During the conference, attendees and speakers discuss the current trends in the healthcare system and solutions and how they disrupt the healthcare industry.

The HIMSCON features presentations from domain leaders and industry experts, panel discussions with top industry executives, as well as an exhibit of vendors and support service providers.

Forward-looking as the event may be, the HIMSCON also devotes time to looking back at the year’s achievements and examining the factors that affect the positioning of the Philippines as a leading HIMS destination.

Quarterly General Membership Meeting

While the HIMSCON is well attended by industry players, HIMAP’s quarterly general membership meeting is exclusive to the group’s members.

The general meeting is for inducting new HIMAP members and discussing issues that are of interest to the group. This usually includes the future and challenges of having office spaces in Manila.

Significant time is also spent discussing and developing key organization projects, such as the benefits and issues that accompany the growth of the country’s Next Wave Cities.

How to join HIMAP

To join, the applicant should fill out the application form, which can be downloaded on the HIMAP website, and submit it along with the company’s SEC Registration or DTI Certificate. The HIMAP also requires the company’s business profile, board of directors, annual revenue, and other pertinent information.

There are three membership types in HIMAP.

General membership

This type of membership is open to any duly-registered corporation, partnership, or single proprietorship that operates any business concerned with healthcare information management documentation.

Associate membership

Meanwhile, associate membership is open to any duly registered corporation, partnership, or single proprietorship that is engaged in healthcare information management training.

Compared to the first type, associate membership includes any educational institution that provides HIM-related transcription courses.

Affiliate membership

Lastly, affiliate membership is divided into two subtypes:

• Individual membership for individuals employed by the companies under general membership
• Corporate membership for vendors that provide products or services intended for the medical transcription industry.

A bright future for the HIMAP industry post-COVID

Much has changed from the boom of the pandemic in 2020 that largely affected the global industries, including BPO. It is said that the majority of the increase in demand in the outsourcing sector came from the spike in healthcare demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the IT-BPM Roadmap 2016-2022 comes to a close with the outgoing Duterte Administration, the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) now looks forward to updating the Roadmap for the next six years (2022-2028).

According to news reports, the updated Industry Roadmap attempts to consider new policy interventions and strategies amid the pandemic.

Among the strategies to be considered include longer-term work arrangements and the government intervention that would come with it. With the spike in demand for remote work, former IBPAP CEO Untal suggests that BPOs “[won’t turn] back to the old model” of working.

As for the healthcare information management sector, they look forward to seeking a larger share of the Australian Market. This is since the pandemic has proved the sector is able to take care of high-value work.

By sharing best practices, offering professional support, and enabling its members to understand and respond to the changing needs of the industry, the HIMAP is on the right track to reaching its goals.