News Article

“ROAR” App Earns FSW Professor Elizabeth Whitmer Innovation Triumph Award

Sep 28, 2017

SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 – FORT MYERS, FLA – Florida SouthWestern State College Health Information Technology professor Elizabeth Whitmer has been awarded the 2017 Innovation Triumph Award by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA).

AHIMA’s Innovation Award honors individuals, groups or organizations that that have focused on moving Health Information Management (HIM) into the future and have promoted important advances in areas related to HIM practice, quality data, standards development, patient safety, systems development and any domain where visionary thinking has made a difference.

Whitmer created “ROAR: Root Operation App Rescue,” a smartphone app for medical coding students. The app enables students to expand their grasp of coding terminology of the ICD-10-PCS medical coding system. The system has more than 70,000 seven-digit alphanumeric codes used in patient records for insurance agencies, Medicaid, Medicare, attorneys, workers comp and other billing agencies. The code provides information on the patient illness or injury, the location on the body, and the procedures and treatments the doctor performed. The app is currently being used by coding students at Bryan University in Tempe, Ariz. and has produced demonstrable improvements in student performance.

“Professor Whitmer has used her vision and creativity to enhance her profession and improve student learning,” said Dr. Marie Collins, dean, FSW School of Health Professions. “We are quite proud of her accomplishments.”

“This is a profession that not many people know about,” Whitmer said. “It’s quite fulfilling to know that I am giving back to my passion and helping more people become interested in medical coding. I am honored to receive this award.”

ABOUT AHIMA: The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) represents more than 103,000 health information professionals in the United States and around the world. AHIMA is committed to promoting and advocating for best practices and effective standards in health information and to actively contributing to the development and advancement of health information professionals worldwide. AHIMA is advancing informatics, data analytics, and information governance to achieve the goal of providing expertise to ensure trusted information for healthcare. www.ahima.org.

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Florida SouthWestern State College is Southwest Florida’s largest and one of the most affordable institutions of higher education. Annually serving nearly 22,000 students globally, FSW offers a variety of nationally-ranked, career-focused academic programs with two- and four-year degrees, and professional certifications. Students are also active in clubs and programs catered to their interests. FSW debuted its intercollegiate athletics program in January 2016. Visit www.FSW.edu for more information.

Last Updated: September 28, 2017