Which of the following is a key benefit of ensuring proper health information management?

Ensuring proper health information management is crucial for several reasons, with a primary benefit being improved legal compliance and patient safety. Effective health information management involves accurate, timely, and secure handling of patient data, which is essential for meeting legal requirements and regulations such as HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) in the United States. By maintaining compliance, healthcare organizations can avoid legal issues, penalties, and potential lawsuits.

Moreover, proper health information management decreases the likelihood of medical errors, which directly enhances patient safety. When health records are well-organized and easily accessible, healthcare providers can make informed decisions based on accurate information, leading to better patient outcomes. This commitment to safety not only benefits patients but also builds trust and credibility in the healthcare organization.

In contrast, options that suggest increased patient wait times, lower costs for health records management, and enhanced marketing may not represent direct benefits of proper health information management. Increased patient wait times would be a negative outcome of poor management practices, while cost reduction can be a secondary benefit of efficiency but is not the primary focus of health information management. Enhanced marketing might occur indirectly as a result of improved patient safety and compliance but is not a core benefit of managing health information correctly.