Exploring the Medical Records Technician Role: Job Duties & Training

Key Insights:

• Medical records technicians work within the health information management field and help healthcare organizations ensure that their patients’ health records are updated, organized, accurate, complete, and secure.
• While some healthcare employers hire medical records technicians with a high school diploma, others require some level of postsecondary education. Certification may be required or preferred, too.
• If you’re interested in a career in health information management, Ultimate Medical Academy can help you prepare.

A medical records technician helps healthcare agencies organize, manage, and store their patients’ private health information. Here, we dive a little further into this health information management role, including the duties these professionals perform and steps you can take to begin to pursue this entry-level healthcare position.

What Is a Medical Records Technician?

Medical records technicians — sometimes referred to as health information technicians or health information specialists — assist medical offices and other healthcare agencies with the management and organization of patient health information. This role is administrative, making it unlike healthcare positions that involve working directly with patients to diagnose, treat, and/or manage their healthcare issues.

A medical records technician is more behind the scenes. They handle the input, organization, and storage of patient information within the organization’s record-keeping system.

What Does a Medical Records Technician Do?

Medical records techs have a variety of job functions. Among them are:

• Recording a patient’s health information using the correct classification codes for their diagnoses, testing procedures, and treatments (known as medical coding)
• Reviewing patient records to ensure they are complete and accurate
• Organizing patient information in clinical databases and/or patient registries
• Protecting patients’ privacy via safe medical record storage strategies

Performing these functions often entails working within electronic health record (EHR) systems.¹ EHRs are digital versions of a patient’s medical chart. They can include the patient’s medical history, diagnostic tests performed, their diagnoses, medications they’re taking, their treatment plan, allergies, and immunizations.²

Medical Records Technician Job Titles

Search for medical records technician jobs online, and you will likely notice that they have many potential job titles. A few beyond that of medical records technician include:

• Health Information Technician
• Health Information Management Technician
• Medical Records Specialist

These titles can change based on the type of employer (hospital versus doctor’s office, for example), as well as the specific type of patients a healthcare agency sees (older adults versus newborns). When looking for a medical records technician job online, it may be helpful to search for a few different keywords, as each may return different results.

How To Become a Medical Records Technician

If you want to work as a medical records technician, there are a few different ways you can go about it.

Medical records technician training and education

Some healthcare agencies hire medical records technicians with a high school diploma (or its equivalent) and healthcare experience, while others require a postsecondary education in health information management.³ This education helps provide the knowledge and skill sets needed to work in the role of a medical records technician.

If your career goals are to advance to a management position in medical records or health information, earning your bachelor’s or master’s degree may be required. Each healthcare facility sets its own training and educational requirements.

Medical records technician schools

Enrolling in a school that offers a health information management degree program can help you obtain an education in areas a medical records technician would need to know. For example, Ultimate Medical Academy (UMA) offers a Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program that covers topics such as:

• Information technology in healthcare
• Computer office productivity applications
• International Classification of Diseases (ICD) coding

Medical records technician career training can vary in terms of length, the courses taught, degree options (associate, bachelor’s, master’s, etc.), and more. Therefore, it’s important to do your research so that the one you select can help you achieve your specific career-related goals.

Medical records technician certification

Certification may also be required to work in this type of healthcare role.³ Earning your certification generally requires taking and passing a competency exam administered by an accrediting agency.

The school you attend may help you get ready for this exam. For instance, learners in UMA’s Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program receive preparation to sit for the Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) exam, if eligible,⁴ should they decide to pursue this credential.

Let UMA Help Prepare You for the Health Information Management Field

UMA’s Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program can be completed in 18 months or more⁵ and includes 90 hours of hands-on, supervised work experience.

It is programmatically accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). CAHIIM accreditation signifies that a program has undergone a rigorous review process and been determined to meet the standards set by this accrediting institution.

Contact us today to learn more or to discuss how we can help you prepare to pursue a career in the health information management field.

FAQs:

• What are medical records? Medical records are files or documents that contain patients’ private health information. They can contain information about patients’ medical histories, their health diagnoses, diagnostic tests performed, treatment plans, and other information related to their health and wellness.
• How do you become a medical records technician? The requirements to work as a medical records technician can vary from one healthcare facility to another. Some require that you have your high school diploma, while others require you to have some level of postsecondary education and/or certification, such as a health information management degree.³
• How long does it take to become a medical records technician? The length of time it takes to prepare for a medical records technician role can change based on the requirements of the employer, such as if a certain type of degree is required. UMA’s Health Information Management Associate of Science / Associate of Applied Science Degree program can be completed in 18 months or more.⁴
• What is the job description of a medical records technician? Duties required in a medical records technician role can include organizing, storing, and retrieving patient health information; reviewing patients’ medical records for accuracy; inputting patient information in electronic health record (EHR) systems; and ensuring that patient records are securely stored so they’re inaccessible to unauthorized personnel.
• Where do medical records technicians work? Several types of healthcare facilities employ medical records technicians, some of which include doctors’ offices, hospitals, and insurance companies.
• What are common job titles for medical technician positions? Other than jobs posted for a medical records technician, you can also find these roles listed under titles such as health information technician, health information specialist, and health information management technician, just to name a few.