What Can You Do with a HIM Degree?

Key Insights:

• HIM is short for health information management, a subsection of healthcare that helps contribute to patient care and an efficient reimbursement process.

• Individuals with a HIM degree may qualify for a variety of roles, from entry-level positions like Health Information Specialist and Insurance Coordinator to other roles that require a higher level of education.

• Ultimate Medical Academy (UMA) offers a Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program that can help you prepare for a career in this field.

Roughly 13,800 new medical records specialist roles are projected to open between 2024 and 2034.1 If you’re considering pursuing one, you may be thinking about earning your Associate of Science/Associate of Applied Science degree in health information management (HIM). But what does a HIM degree look like, and what types of positions and job titles can it help prepare you to pursue?

What Is a HIM Degree?

Health information management refers to the collection, organization, storage, and tracking of patients’ private healthcare information. This can involve the use of software and other digital technology such as electronic health records (EHRs) to input, store, and retrieve a patient’s vital statistics and health history, as well as data related to their diagnoses, testing procedures, and treatment plans.

Earning a HIM degree can help prepare you to perform these types of functions. For instance, Ultimate Medical Academy’s Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program includes courses that cover:

• Health information and the healthcare record
• Information technology in healthcare environments
• Computer office productivity applications
• Medical coding systems
• HIM roles, theories, and skills

Why Health Information Management Is Important

Managing patients’ health information serves several important purposes within the healthcare system.

Supporting patient care

Part of health information management involves ensuring that patients’ records are complete and accurate.² The Physicians Foundation reports that inaccurate patient health information can impact a physician’s ability to deliver safe, quality patient care, while also undermining the physician-patient relationship.³

Contributing to efficient reimbursement processes

Accurate patient data is also important for insurance reimbursement. Insurance companies rely on data submitted by providers to decide whether a patient’s medical services are covered and, if so, at what rate. If this data is incorrect, it could lead to a denial of reimbursement. This can delay payment to the medical provider while new, updated patient information is provided, which can also create frustration for the patient.

Safeguarding patients’ private information

Keeping patients’ health information confidential is another important aspect of a health information management role. Professionals in these roles can be tasked with ensuring that recordkeeping systems are not accessible to unauthorized users, safeguarding patients’ private medical data.

What Can You Do With a HIM Degree?

If a health information management career path appeals to you, enrolling in a HIM program can help prepare you to pursue a variety of roles.

Entry-level HIM job titles

A number of entry-level job titles may perform HIM functions. They include:

• Health Information Specialist
• Medical Records Specialist
• Medical Office / Medical Administration
• Insurance Coordinator

Exact duties for each role can vary, as can the responsibilities required by specific employers. Yet, all may involve working with a patient’s private health information within a designated recordkeeping and/or billing system.

HIM opportunities with more education

Earning a HIM associate degree can help prepare you for entry-level positions such as those mentioned above. If you want a more advanced career, pursuing your bachelor’s degree may help provide the education needed to hold higher-level roles, such as:⁴

• Privacy Analyst
• Clinical Systems Analyst
• Revenue Cycle Trainer
• Registrar for Disease Registry

Obtaining a master’s degree may be required (or preferred) if your healthcare career goal is to obtain a position such as Chief Health Informatics Officer, Chief Privacy Officer, Director of Revenue Cycle Management, or Health Information Management Director.⁴

What to Expect in an Entry-Level HIM Position

Many health information management roles involve data entry, data confirmation, and/or data retrieval. Some of this data is basic patient information, such as name, address, and date of birth. Other data involves the use of coding systems to accurately record a patient’s diagnosis, medical testing procedures, and treatment methods.

Entry-level HIM positions can be found at many different types of healthcare organizations. Hospitals, doctors’ offices, and insurance companies all employ health information management professionals.

Learn More: Your HIM Questions Answered

What Type of Person Might Like Health Information Management?

If you like the idea of working in healthcare but are more interested in non-patient-facing healthcare roles, health information management offers this ability. It enables you to have a positive impact on both patients and the healthcare system while working with technology versus being in a direct patient care role, such as dental assistant, medical assistant, or patient care technician.

Qualities that are important when working in health information management include:⁵

• The ability to be analytical
• Attention to detail
• Being able to work with others in patient care and recordkeeping positions

If you possess these qualities, you may enjoy a HIM role.

Interested in Pursuing Your HIM Degree?

If you are interested in pursuing an entry-level health information management role, enrolling in a HIM program can help provide the education and skills needed to complete typical tasks in this field.

UMA’s Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program enables you to earn your degree in 18 months or more.⁶ This course also prepares you to sit for your Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) certification exam, should you qualify.⁷

Why UMA?

At UMA, we’re committed to helping you do your best in your HIM courses. If you have questions about specific assignments, want study tips or tutoring, or need another type of academic support, let us know. Our caring and compassionate team members are here to assist in any way we can.

Contact us to learn more or to enroll.

Watch: Ken’Neatha N. talks about earning an online HIM degree at UMA

FAQs:

• What jobs can you get with a HIM associate degree? UMA’s Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program helps prepare you to pursue entry-level HIM positions such as health information specialist and insurance coordinator.
• What do health information managers do? Health information managers can be tasked with collecting, organizing, storing, and tracking patient health data, often with the use of technology such as electronic health record (EHR) systems.
• Do I need a bachelor’s degree to work in health information management? The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that an associate degree or higher isn’t generally required to work in this field.⁵ However, if you wish to advance within this career path, earning your bachelor’s or master’s degree may be necessary.
• What is a HIM degree? A health information management degree is a credential earned after successfully completing an educational institution’s required curriculum. For instance, courses included as part of UMA’s Health Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program include Healthcare Law, Policies, and Ethics; Healthcare Reimbursement & the Revenue Cycle; and Human Anatomy & Physiology I and II.

Where national data regarding earnings or employability within a particular field are cited, individual readers should take note that national averages may not accurately reflect the earnings of workers in their particular part of the country and may include earners at all stages of their career, not just entry-level wages for recent graduates.