Health Information Technology

Program Description

The Health Information Technology program prepares students to perform a variety of technical health information functions, including organizing, analyzing and technically evaluating health information; compiling various administrative and health statistics; and coding diseases, operations, procedures and other therapies.

This program can be completed on a full-time or part-time basis. All core program classes are offered online.

Graduates are in great demand by hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, insurance companies, medical research organizations and government agencies.

The Health Information Technology program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). Graduates are eligible to take the national certification exam offered by the American Health Information Management Association to become Registered Health Information Technicians (RHIT).

Job shadowing in this field is recommended prior to application. For more information about this career: www.ahima.org/careers/intro.cfm.

Statewide Salary Range for Recent Graduates

$22,109 $62,395

Approximate Costs

• $106 per credit (resident)
• $159 per credit (out-of-state resident)
• *Online students are not charged out-of-state fees.

Career Opportunities

• Coding Specialist
• Release of Information Specialist
• Health Information Technician
• Insurance/Business
• Reimbursement Coordinator
• Data Quality and Integrity Monitor
• Data Security, Privacy and Confidentiality Manager
• Data Analyst

Program Outcomes

• Adhere to health information requirements and standards.
• Utilize clinical classification systems.
• Support data collection and reimbursement systems.
• Abstract health care data for analysis and presentation.
• Adhere to security, privacy and confidentiality policies.
• Use information technology systems to process health information.
• Apply organizational management techniques to improve efficiency of departmental functions and services.
• Model professional behavior, ethics and appearance.

Entrance Scores

Admission Process

• Submit the college admission application.
• Submit the $30 one-time fee.
• Submit high school and other official college transcripts.
• Take the college assessment test (Accuplacer, ACT or other). The Accuplacer assessment can be taken at MPTC.
• Meet with Admissions to discuss order of courses and prerequisites (required for this program).
• Health Requirements need to be met and a Criminal Background Check is required.
• Check with Admissions if any additional steps are required.