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Health Information Technology

A Degree in one of the Health Information Professions can lead to varied career choices. We invite you to explore your opportunities in this little known technical and rewarding field of healthcare. See how you can satisfy your desire for a career in the medical field but not have to deal with death and blood. You will have the satisfaction of helping others as well as serving on a healthcare team. The demand for trained, credentialed workers in the business end of healthcare is growing at a phenomenal rate due to the increase in our aging population. The work is rewarding and challenging because of its variety and ever changing nature. Please refer to the skills required for these professions by going to Technical Standards.

At San Juan College we offer the following programs related to health information management. Click on any of the following to find out further information.

Health Information Technology – Associate of Applied Science Degree
Medical Transcription – Certificate

A Career For Today

The world in which we live is constantly changing. We’ve become an information-based society, and this technology affects everything we do—from driving a car to cashing a check. It’s no wonder, then, that health information management has grown into such a vital specialty. Today, the medical world depends on health information management specialists to collect data, interpret it, protect it, and determine how it can be used.

By entering this field, you’ll help ensure the quality of healthcare through quality information. As a highly-respected medical professional, you’ll touch the lives of others, right from your own desk. You’ll contribute to quality care without direct patient contact.

A Career For Tomorrow

As you’d expect, quite a few health information management specialists work in hospitals and clinics. But you’ll also find them in insurance companies, law firms, physicians’ offices, and long-term and mental healthcare facilities. They work in consulting firms, in computer companies, and in state and federal agencies, and they teach in colleges and universities.

Actually, any workplace involved with health and wellness needs professionals to manage information. There are positions available all over the country for health information management specialists. And the future looks even brighter. As a matter of fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that, by the year 2010 the need for health information management specialists will grow dramatically.

Pathways To Success

All members of the healthcare team—doctors , nurses, and other patient-care professionals—respect the health information management specialists as the expert in medical data. They know that health information management specialists have a unique understanding of how health data is gathered, how it can be used while protecting its confidentiality, and how it can be interpreted. Most importantly, health-team members know that quality information is a significant part of quality healthcare, and they look to the leaders—health information management specialists—to provide it.

What you do in your individual job as a health information management specialist depends on which type of specialist you become: RHIT or a CCS.

The Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT)

RHITs’ responsibilities also include: maintaining and using a variety of health information indexes, special registries and storage and retrieval systems; inputting and retrieving computerized health data; and controlling the use and release of health information.

The way you can become an RHIT is to complete a two-year academic program at an accredited college such as San Juan College.

Once you’ve completed your education, you can take the national accreditation examination. When you pass, you can use the initials RHIT after your name.

The Certified Coding Specialist (CCS)

One of the extremely important aspects of health information management involves applying codes to classify medical data. These numerical codes help report diagnoses and procedures—and the person who assigns the codes must be fully trained and accurate. A Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) is recognized as skilled beyond entry-level in analyzing medical records and assigning and sequencing codes.

The CCS candidate will have a high school education or equivalent. A combination of on-the-job experience and coding education are also strongly recommended. The coding education can be attained through a variety of sources, including workshops, seminars, and coding tracks within HIT programs. Once you’ve learned all about coding, you can take the certification examination.

Is Health Information Management In Your Future?

• Are you interested in computer science, information technology, legal and legislative developments, or business administration?
• Would you like to be part of the world of medicine, as a patient advocate and health information manager?
• Do you enjoy diversity?
• Are you organized and detail-oriented?
• Would you like to make a real contribution to the welfare of others?

If you answered “yes” to two or more of these questions, a career in health information management could be just right for you!