Health Informatics and Information Technology

Important Information

Semester Sequence

This is a full-time suggested schedule for a student who has completed any developmental course work and has no transfer credits. Refer to the College catalog for specific requirements in selecting General Education Courses .

Courses Needed for This Program*

Total Number of Credits Required for Degree: 62*

Note

*Credit students who are new to college (no successfully completed transferable college credits from other institutions) are required to take ACDV 101 - Academic Development: Transitioning to College . This 1-credit course is designed to be taken in the first semester at CCBC. Students must provide an official transcript(s) from an accredited institution to document successful completion of college coursework for the ACDV 101 requirement to be waived.

Program Description

Health informatics and information technology is the combination of informational science, health care, and computer technology. With the federal mandate to implement the electronic health record (EHR) and the paradigm shift in industry to health informatics, the field of health information management is rapidly evolving. The entire health care system is built upon information - patient data, medical data, insurance, and billing information. The data retrieved by the use of health informatics provides statistical information that can have a major effect on how medicine is distributed, surgeries that are performed, and how healing is tracked.

The Health Informatics and Information Technology A.A.S. degree is an administrative, applied technology degree for students interested in a non-clinical care profession in the health care industry.

Students who complete this degree will find employment in various health care settings, insurance companies, government agencies, technology companies, and consulting firms as health information technicians, clinical documentation specialists, compliance managers, quality assurance officers, medical informatics managers, charge description managers, case mix analysts, health data analysts, EHR system managers, IT training specialists, and workflow and data analysts.

Prerequisite: Students must be eligible for General Education English and Math classes to enter the program.

Program Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this degree, students will be able to:

1. analyze health records, policies and procedures, and employee performance for compliance with legal and regulatory requirements; 
2. interpret health data and identify trends that will improve overall quality, safety, and effectiveness in the health care institution and will contribute to increased continuity of patient care;
3. perform data quality reviews to validate code assignment and compliance with reporting requirements;
4. contribute to organizational work plans, policies, procedures, quality management, and resource requisitions;
5. incorporate technology to facilitate workplace transition to an e-HIM environment; and
6. utilize databases and spreadsheets to consolidate, manipulate, integrate, and display health data.

Other

Accreditation

The Health Informatics and Information Technology Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM), 233 North Michigan Avenue, 21st Floor, Chicago, IL 60601-1683; (312) 233-1100.

Program Highlights

Graduates are eligible to apply for the national certification examination to become a Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT).

Student RHIT examination pass rate is 90% for the current reporting year. Graduate placement rate is 91%, graduate satisfaction rate is 91%, and employer satisfaction rate is 95%; all exceeding the current CAHIIM threshold for accreditation.