According to AHIMA's retention standards, how long should the master patient index be maintained?

The master patient index (MPI) is a critical component of healthcare information management, serving as a foundational database that consolidates all the medical record numbers and demographic details of patients. According to AHIMA's retention standards, the MPI should be maintained permanently. This is essential because the MPI not only helps in tracking the healthcare history of patients over their lifetimes but also plays a crucial role in ensuring accurate patient identification, preventing duplicate records, and facilitating continuity of care.

Since patients may return for care years after their last visit, maintaining the MPI permanently ensures that their complete healthcare history and interactions with the healthcare system are easily accessible. This permanent retention supports the integrity and validity of patient care and the overall efficiency of healthcare delivery systems. Furthermore, permanent retention of the MPI aligns with regulatory and compliance requirements, which may necessitate that accurate and complete patient identification data be maintained indefinitely for legal, billing, actuarial, and research purposes.