The characteristics of data quality include accessibility, accuracy, consistency, comprehensiveness, currency, definition, granularity, relevancy, precision, and timeliness (Sayles, 2013). Data accessibility states that the data are easily obtainable. For example, any organization that maintains health records for individual patients must have systems in place that identify each patient and support efficient access to information on each patient (Sayles, 2013). Data accuracy means that data are correct. It must be the correct value and must be represented in a consistent form. Consistency is sometimes referred to as reliability. This data should not change no matter how many times it is recorded or who is recording it. Data comprehensiveness means that all elements are included or data are complete. Missing data could jeopardize the patient care. To avoid missing data, some databases will not allow the user to move to the next field (Sayles, 2013). Data currency means that healthcare data should be up to date. Data definition just means that the data and information documented is defined. It may give a range of acceptable values, for example. Data granularity is the level of detail at which the attributes and values of healthcare data are defined (AHIMA, 2012). Data relevancy means that the data …show more content…
They will need to be sure that the documents are stored safely and that authorized personnel can access them or retrieve them with ease. Without a good storage and retrieval filing system in place, it would be nearly impossible to locate and get the records when they are needed (Sayles, 2013). Several standards can be set to monitor the quality of the storage and retrieval process. Filing accuracy should be checked often and any misfiles should be noted and then rechecked. Timeliness of the storage and retrieval processes also can be monitored. Data analysis is also very important. No business can survive without analyzing the available data. It is the process by which data are translated into information that can be used for designated application (Sayles, 2013). Data analysis is important to check quality, find abnormalities or errors, compare to other data and look for trends, and to also find out what the data actually