Program gains national accreditation

By James Walls
Editor-in-Chief

The Health Information Technology (HIT) program gained national accreditation this February from the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). In order to receive this accreditation, the program had to pass certain requirements and standards set by the organization, which not only accredits two-year programs, but also four-year and master programs, as well.

With the program’s accreditation, graduates with this degree can now sit for a national exam through the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). This exam will determine if students can acquire certain job titles in the field, and offer more opportunities for those with the necessary skills. For some students, earning that credential is important.

“You have to graduate from an accredited program now in order to sit for your certified coding specialist or your registered health information technology certification with AHIMA,” said Emily Beets, HIT major. “With people, if you have the choice between hiring an uncertified coder and hiring a coder who has sat and attained a national accreditation, the ‘I know this stuff, here’s proof,’ you’re going to hire the credentialed one.”

Susan Foster, HIT program director, is excited to see the program earn its accreditation.

“With [this] accreditation there are many different standards that our program has to meet, plus our curriculum has to cover all of those at a certain Bloom’s taxonomy level,” said Foster. “We’re just really excited about that, that our students have that opportunity, because that’s going to make them very marketable.”

HIT is a total online, two year Associate’s program that focuses on managing patient information. It was designed to appeal to students that need the flexibility of online courses while teaching them the skills needed to make it into the healthcare field. To learn more about the program or its accreditation, contact Susan Foster at susanfoster@crowder.edu.