Southern New Hampshire University HIM 220 Module Three Worksheet
Ashley Albright
Review the "Real World Case" involving a data dictionary on p. 40 of Introduction to
Information Systems for Health Information Technology. Then, answer the following:
1. What is the purpose of the data dictionary and why is it important to create one?
"Data dictionaries are descriptive lists of names, definitions, and attributes of data
elements to be collected in an information system or database whose purpose is to
standardize definitions and ensure consistent use." (Sayles & Kavanaugh-Burke, 2022) It
is important to create a data dictionary because they ensure that fields have the same
meaning and format throughout the organization by creating consistent data field names,
data field definitions, field length, and element values. (Sayles & Kavanaugh-Burke,
2022)
2. How will the data dictionary help improve or address data consistency, data currency
data definitions, data granularity, data precision, data relevancy, and data timeliness?
The data dictionary will help improve or address data consistency, data currency, data
definitions, data granularity, data precision, data relevancy, and data timeliness by
"making it easier for database developers and end users to communicate using the same
language to meet the needs of the organization so all users are consistent with their
reporting of data." (Hermann, 2022)
Southern New Hampshire University
3. Do you think it is necessary for this healthcare facility to have a data warehouse? If so,
why, and how, will the laboratory IS provide useful information to the data warehouse?
"A data warehouse is a database that makes it possible to access data from multiple
databases and combine the results into a single query and reporting interface." (Sayles &
Kavanaugh-Burke, 2022) By using a data warehouse, healthcare organizations not only
provide accurate data for resource utilization and management, but the information in the
data warehouse is also used to improve patient care. (Evans, Lloyd, & Pierece, 2012)
4. How could data mining be applied to this scenario?
"Data mining is the process of extracting and analyzing large amounts of data from a
database in order to identify hidden and subtle relationships or patterns using the
relationships to predict behavior. (Sayles & Kavanauh-Burke, 2022) Data mining could
be applied to this scenario because it could be used to see if there are any errors within
the data dictionary in the healthcare organization.
Southern New Hampshire University
Sources
Evans, R. S., Lloyd, J. F., & Pierce, L. A. (2012). Clinical use of an enterprise data
warehouse. AMIA ... Annual Symposium proceedings. AMIA Symposium, 2012, 189-198.
Hermann, M. (2022, April 6). What is a Data Dictionary? Journal of AHIMA. Retrieved May
20, 2022, from https://journal.ahima.org/page/what-is-a-data-dictionary#:%7E:text=It
%20makes%20it%20easier%20for,of%20an%20information%20governance
%20program.
Sayles, N. B., & Kavanaugh-Burke, L. (2021). Introduction to information systems for Health
Information Technology (Fourth). AHIMA Press.