What does linking office visits and hospital encounters by diagnosis allow for?

Linking office visits and hospital encounters by diagnosis primarily facilitates the tracking of patient treatment history. When these encounters are connected through a shared diagnosis, healthcare providers can easily reference a patient's comprehensive treatment timeline. This integration allows for a more cohesive understanding of the patient’s health journey, including previous treatments, outcomes, and ongoing care requirements.

In essence, it helps in creating a complete clinical picture which is vital for effective care management and continuity of treatment. This thorough tracking enhances the healthcare provider's ability to make informed decisions based on the patient's history, leading to improved patient outcomes. The other choices, while related to healthcare processes, do not capture the primary benefit of linking visits by diagnosis as directly as the ability to track a patient's treatment history does.