Recent news out of Sedalia, Mo. shows that the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management (CAHIIM) has awarded the State Fair Community College with an initial accreditation for its Health Information Technology Associate of Applied Science degree program.
The CAHIIM accredits associate and bachelor's degrees in health information management. It has a Board of Commissions that serves to advance the quality of students' education experiences by holding universities and colleges to educational standards while also assessing student achievement in the areas of health informatics and information.
Analysis of the issue at Insurance News Net quotes Beverly Marquez, the SFCC health information program coordinator, who spoke to the goal of students wanting to become Registered Health Information technicians. She said students who want to become technicians must pass an American Health Information Management Association exam before they can be certified. And only graduates from CAHIIM accredited schools can sit for the exam. Therefore, the recent bestowal of accreditation means a lot for both the community college and the students who attend.
"Students must have graduated from an accredited program to sit for the exam," Marquez said. "These credentials are what make graduates marketable. With all the new reviews, audits and laws regarding health information, organizations have begun hiring only credentialed employees. That's what makes this accreditation important."
The SFCC Applied Science degree program seeks to provide students with the knowledge they need to become adept at health information management. It focuses on the handling of medical records with specific attention given to document security and confidentiality. Requirements for accreditation include the teaching of patient progress management, the use of billing reports and databases, and use of medical coding, and therefore those skill sets should transfer to students enrolled in such programs.
Accreditation of SFCC's program should allow the college to reach out to more students who want to sit for the health management exam and become registered technicians, and it is possible the popularity of the program will rise now that the college has accreditation under its wings.
Edited by
Maurice Nagle
