RHIT CERTIFICATION EXAM– QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS |
VERIFIED AND WELL DETAILED ANSWERS PLUS RATIONALES |
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1. A newly appointed HIM director is assessing the physical security controls of the file
storage archive. According to the HIPAA Security Rule, which physical safeguard measure
is required to prevent unauthorized physical access to electronic information systems and
the facility in which they are housed?
A. Installing high-speed fiber-optic network cables across all campus departments.
B. Implementing facility access controls, including visitor sign-in logs, escort procedures, and
badge reader access doors.
C. Positioning backup server monitors facing public corridors for rapid technician visibility.
D. Disconnecting all physical keyboards from terminal workstations in secure office areas.
ANSWER: B. Implementing facility access controls, including visitor sign-in logs, escort
procedures, and badge reader access doors.
Physical safeguards under the HIPAA Security Rule require covered entities to limit physical
access to electronic information systems and facilities while ensuring that unauthorized
personnel cannot bypass physical security barriers.
2. An inpatient coding specialist is analyzing a complex medical record where a patient was
admitted with severe acute abdominal pain and subsequently diagnosed with an acute
perforated duodenal ulcer. During the same stay, the patient developed acute post-
operative anemia due to blood loss. How must the principal diagnosis be sequenced?
A. Acute post-operative anemia
B. Acute perforated duodenal ulcer
C. Acute abdominal pain symptom
D. Hospital room bed assignment number
ANSWER: B. Acute perforated duodenal ulcer
According to official ICD-10-CM coding guidelines, when a patient is admitted for a condition
that is established after study to be responsible for occasioning the admission, that condition is
sequenced as the principal diagnosis.
,3. An HIM data analyst is reviewing birth statistics for a community hospital. In the
previous year, there were 3,200 live births and 40 fetal deaths. What is the fetal death rate
formula and calculation?
A. (,200) * 100
B. (40 / (3,200 + 40)) * 100
C. (3,) * 100
D. ((3,200 - 40) / 3,200) * 100
ANSWER: B. (40 / (3,200 + 40)) * 100
The fetal death rate is calculated by dividing intermediate and late fetal deaths by the sum of
total live births plus fetal deaths, multiplied by 100, reflecting the total pregnancy termination
outcomes.
4. A patient submits a formal, written request to a healthcare provider for an electronic
copy of their medical record via an encrypted USB drive provided by the patient. Under
HIPAA guidance, what is the covered entity's obligation regarding the format?
A. Refuse the USB drive and insist on printing 400 pages of paper records.
B. Must provide the electronic copy in the readable electronic format requested (such as on the
patient's USB drive) if readily producible.
C. Destroy the USB drive immediately for internal cybersecurity compliance reasons.
D. Charge a prohibitive administrative handling fee of 400 dollars.
ANSWER: B. Must provide the electronic copy in the readable electronic format requested
(such as on the patient's USB drive) if readily producible.
Under HHS HIPAA guidance, if an individual requests electronic PHI in a specific electronic
format that is readily producible, the covered entity must provide it in that requested format.
5. An HIM coding supervisor identifies a high frequency of unmapped ICD-10-to-ICD-9
historical data discrepancies during an analytics migration project. What tool is officially
provided by CMS to facilitate code translation and data mapping between code sets?
A. General Equivalence Mappings (GEMs)
B. Hospital cafeteria nutritional guidelines
C. Physician prescription pad templates
,D. Real-time stock market ticker feeds
ANSWER: A. General Equivalence Mappings (GEMs)
GEMs are developed and maintained jointly by CMS and the CDC as a tool to translate and
map codes back and forth between ICD-10 and legacy code sets for longitudinal data analysis.
6. A healthcare organization is establishing a disaster recovery plan for its electronic
document management system. Which metric defines the maximum acceptable length of
time that a system can remain offline following a disaster before critical business
operations are impacted?
A. Recovery Point Objective (RPO)
B. Recovery Time Objective (RTO)
C. Retention Span Index (RSI)
D. Record Turnover Interval (RTI)
ANSWER: B. Recovery Time Objective (RTO)
Recovery Time Objective (RTO) specifies the maximum allowable downtime duration for IT
systems during a disaster recovery scenario, whereas RPO measures acceptable data loss time.
7. An HIM manager is reviewing the retention schedule for pathology slides and blocks. In
the absence of more stringent state laws, what is the standard recommended minimum
retention period for pathology slides and paraffin blocks?
A. Exactly 24 hours
B. 10 years (or permanent retention in specific clinical research or institutional policy
frameworks)
C. 1 month
D. Exactly 500 years
ANSWER: B. 10 years (or permanent retention in specific clinical research or institutional
policy frameworks)
Pathology slides, blocks, and wet tissue specimens typically require a minimum 10-year
retention period under standard clinical laboratory and hospital accreditation guidelines.
, 8. An HIM compliance auditor is evaluating physician query documentation. Which of the
following scenarios describes an illegal or non-compliant leading query?
A. Asking the physician to clarify whether sepsis was present on admission based on
documented clinical indicators.
B. Providing a query note that states: "The patient has acute kidney failure; please document that
the renal failure is due to dehydration to increase hospital reimbursement."
C. Providing a neutral list of diagnostic choices with an option for "other" and space for clinical
write-in.
D. Asking for clarification on conflicting documentation between nursing notes and physician
discharge summaries.
ANSWER: B. Providing a query note that states: "The patient has acute kidney failure;
please document that the renal failure is due to dehydration to increase hospital
reimbursement."
Leading queries suggest a specific diagnosis or reason solely to influence financial
reimbursement or metrics, violating AHIMA and ACDIS ethical and professional coding
guidelines.
9. An HIM data analyst is reviewing the master patient index (MPI) and discovers that two
completely different patients were mistakenly merged into a single medical record number
due to identical names and birthdates. What term describes this error?
A. MPI overlay
B. MPI duplicate record
C. Data normalization
D. Record truncation
ANSWER: A. MPI overlay
An MPI overlay occurs when data belonging to two or more distinct individuals are
incorrectly merged into a single record, creating severe patient safety and data integrity
hazards.
10. A hospital compliance officer discovers that an employee accessed a patient's electronic
health record without authorization. Upon investigation, it is determined that the breach
affected 350 individuals across various departments. What notification requirements apply
under the HIPAA Breach Notification Rule?
VERIFIED AND WELL DETAILED ANSWERS PLUS RATIONALES |
GUARANTEED PASS | LATEST EXAM UPDATE | EXAM PREP |
STUDY GUIDE | PRACTICE TEST| DOWNLOAD INSTANT PDF
1. A newly appointed HIM director is assessing the physical security controls of the file
storage archive. According to the HIPAA Security Rule, which physical safeguard measure
is required to prevent unauthorized physical access to electronic information systems and
the facility in which they are housed?
A. Installing high-speed fiber-optic network cables across all campus departments.
B. Implementing facility access controls, including visitor sign-in logs, escort procedures, and
badge reader access doors.
C. Positioning backup server monitors facing public corridors for rapid technician visibility.
D. Disconnecting all physical keyboards from terminal workstations in secure office areas.
ANSWER: B. Implementing facility access controls, including visitor sign-in logs, escort
procedures, and badge reader access doors.
Physical safeguards under the HIPAA Security Rule require covered entities to limit physical
access to electronic information systems and facilities while ensuring that unauthorized
personnel cannot bypass physical security barriers.
2. An inpatient coding specialist is analyzing a complex medical record where a patient was
admitted with severe acute abdominal pain and subsequently diagnosed with an acute
perforated duodenal ulcer. During the same stay, the patient developed acute post-
operative anemia due to blood loss. How must the principal diagnosis be sequenced?
A. Acute post-operative anemia
B. Acute perforated duodenal ulcer
C. Acute abdominal pain symptom
D. Hospital room bed assignment number
ANSWER: B. Acute perforated duodenal ulcer
According to official ICD-10-CM coding guidelines, when a patient is admitted for a condition
that is established after study to be responsible for occasioning the admission, that condition is
sequenced as the principal diagnosis.
,3. An HIM data analyst is reviewing birth statistics for a community hospital. In the
previous year, there were 3,200 live births and 40 fetal deaths. What is the fetal death rate
formula and calculation?
A. (,200) * 100
B. (40 / (3,200 + 40)) * 100
C. (3,) * 100
D. ((3,200 - 40) / 3,200) * 100
ANSWER: B. (40 / (3,200 + 40)) * 100
The fetal death rate is calculated by dividing intermediate and late fetal deaths by the sum of
total live births plus fetal deaths, multiplied by 100, reflecting the total pregnancy termination
outcomes.
4. A patient submits a formal, written request to a healthcare provider for an electronic
copy of their medical record via an encrypted USB drive provided by the patient. Under
HIPAA guidance, what is the covered entity's obligation regarding the format?
A. Refuse the USB drive and insist on printing 400 pages of paper records.
B. Must provide the electronic copy in the readable electronic format requested (such as on the
patient's USB drive) if readily producible.
C. Destroy the USB drive immediately for internal cybersecurity compliance reasons.
D. Charge a prohibitive administrative handling fee of 400 dollars.
ANSWER: B. Must provide the electronic copy in the readable electronic format requested
(such as on the patient's USB drive) if readily producible.
Under HHS HIPAA guidance, if an individual requests electronic PHI in a specific electronic
format that is readily producible, the covered entity must provide it in that requested format.
5. An HIM coding supervisor identifies a high frequency of unmapped ICD-10-to-ICD-9
historical data discrepancies during an analytics migration project. What tool is officially
provided by CMS to facilitate code translation and data mapping between code sets?
A. General Equivalence Mappings (GEMs)
B. Hospital cafeteria nutritional guidelines
C. Physician prescription pad templates
,D. Real-time stock market ticker feeds
ANSWER: A. General Equivalence Mappings (GEMs)
GEMs are developed and maintained jointly by CMS and the CDC as a tool to translate and
map codes back and forth between ICD-10 and legacy code sets for longitudinal data analysis.
6. A healthcare organization is establishing a disaster recovery plan for its electronic
document management system. Which metric defines the maximum acceptable length of
time that a system can remain offline following a disaster before critical business
operations are impacted?
A. Recovery Point Objective (RPO)
B. Recovery Time Objective (RTO)
C. Retention Span Index (RSI)
D. Record Turnover Interval (RTI)
ANSWER: B. Recovery Time Objective (RTO)
Recovery Time Objective (RTO) specifies the maximum allowable downtime duration for IT
systems during a disaster recovery scenario, whereas RPO measures acceptable data loss time.
7. An HIM manager is reviewing the retention schedule for pathology slides and blocks. In
the absence of more stringent state laws, what is the standard recommended minimum
retention period for pathology slides and paraffin blocks?
A. Exactly 24 hours
B. 10 years (or permanent retention in specific clinical research or institutional policy
frameworks)
C. 1 month
D. Exactly 500 years
ANSWER: B. 10 years (or permanent retention in specific clinical research or institutional
policy frameworks)
Pathology slides, blocks, and wet tissue specimens typically require a minimum 10-year
retention period under standard clinical laboratory and hospital accreditation guidelines.
, 8. An HIM compliance auditor is evaluating physician query documentation. Which of the
following scenarios describes an illegal or non-compliant leading query?
A. Asking the physician to clarify whether sepsis was present on admission based on
documented clinical indicators.
B. Providing a query note that states: "The patient has acute kidney failure; please document that
the renal failure is due to dehydration to increase hospital reimbursement."
C. Providing a neutral list of diagnostic choices with an option for "other" and space for clinical
write-in.
D. Asking for clarification on conflicting documentation between nursing notes and physician
discharge summaries.
ANSWER: B. Providing a query note that states: "The patient has acute kidney failure;
please document that the renal failure is due to dehydration to increase hospital
reimbursement."
Leading queries suggest a specific diagnosis or reason solely to influence financial
reimbursement or metrics, violating AHIMA and ACDIS ethical and professional coding
guidelines.
9. An HIM data analyst is reviewing the master patient index (MPI) and discovers that two
completely different patients were mistakenly merged into a single medical record number
due to identical names and birthdates. What term describes this error?
A. MPI overlay
B. MPI duplicate record
C. Data normalization
D. Record truncation
ANSWER: A. MPI overlay
An MPI overlay occurs when data belonging to two or more distinct individuals are
incorrectly merged into a single record, creating severe patient safety and data integrity
hazards.
10. A hospital compliance officer discovers that an employee accessed a patient's electronic
health record without authorization. Upon investigation, it is determined that the breach
affected 350 individuals across various departments. What notification requirements apply
under the HIPAA Breach Notification Rule?
