Health Information Technology
- Associate of Applied Science
Program Number:
Program Credits:
Estimated Total Cost:
Managing medical information is a critical component of healthcare. The health information professional must be detail-oriented, comfortable with spreadsheets and databases, and have an interest in the healthcare field.
A health information technician collects, integrates, and analyzes healthcare data, manages information resources related to the delivery of healthcare services, codes medical information for research and insurance reimbursement, maintains patient confidentiality, and tracks information used in making clinical and business decisions.
Jobs for health information technicians are widely available in clinics, hospitals, long-term care facilities, insurance companies, and home care organizations.
Health Information Technology 2016-2017 Graduation Employment Stats
| Graduates | 8 |
| Graduates Responding | 4 |
| Employed in Related Occupation | 3 |
| Employed in Non-related Occupations | 0 |
| Seeking Employment | 1 |
| Continuing Education | 0 |
| Not in Labor Market | 0 |
Salary Data - Related Employment
| Part Time | Full Time | |
|---|---|---|
| Responding | 0 | 3 |
| Average Hours Per Week | 40 | |
| Median Hourly Wage | $18.02 | |
| Hourly Wage Range | $16.75 - $18.25 | |
| Median Annual Salary | $37,479 |
Respondents in Related Occupations
- Coding Specialist 1; Gundersen Health Systems, Onalaska, WI
- ESA Health Record Support Assistant; Mayo Clinic Health Systems, La Crosse, WI
- Medical Coder 2; Gundersen Health Systems, Onalaska, WI
Career Opportunities
Program Outcomes
- Use effective communication skills
- Apply mathematical concepts
- Transfer social and natural science theories into practical applications
- Demonstrate ability to think critically
- Demonstrate ability to value self and work ethically with others in a diverse population
- Use technology effectively
- Make decisions that incorporate the importance of sustainability
- HIT - Apply data governance principles to ensure the quality of health data
- HIT - Apply coding and reimbursement systems
- HIT - Model professional behaviors and ethics
- HIT - Apply informatics and analytics in data use
- HIT - Apply organizational management techniques
Admission Requirements:
College Requirements
Application:
Application Fee:
Program Specific Requirements
To enroll in the Health Information Technology program, first apply for admission to the College, then read the program’s Essential Functions and complete a background check. You can find links to these documents below. In addition, you must complete the prerequisites for General Anatomy and Physiology with a grade of “C” or better. Please see the details below.
- Health Information Technology Essential Functions [1]
- Health Information Technology Background Check form [2]
- General Anatomy and Physiology Prerequisites
- One year of High School or one term of Developmental or College Biology
- One year of High School or one term of Developmental or College Chemistry
- Contact the Welcome Center to make an appointment with a Health & Public Safety Enrollment Services Advisor [3] to complete your Intent to Enroll form.
Accreditation
The Health Information Technology program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM; www.cahiim.org [4]). Graduates of the program are eligible to take the national accreditation exam offered by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA; www.ahima.org [5]).
CAHIIM Reporting Requirements
Program Mission
The mission of the Health Information Technology Program at Western Technical College is to prepare students to become part of a credentialed workforce to support the needs of the health care industry.
Program Goals
The program’s goals reflect the principles and ethics of the Health Information field and support the College’s strategic goals which focus on recruitment, retention, student learning and satisfaction, financial stability and effectiveness of systems and processes. Target outcomes written for each goal are used to evaluate the program on an annual basis.
| Focus | Goals |
|---|---|
| Students |
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| Curriculum |
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| Community of Interest |
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| Advisory Committee |
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| Faculty |
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National Accreditation Examination
Students who graduate from an accredited Health Information Technician program are eligible to take the national accreditation examination of the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). Earning the credential Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) leads to increased salaries, career advancement and job mobility.
Recent examination results for Western’s Health Information Technology program graduates are as follows:
|
Western Candidate Summary
|
National Summary | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Reporting Period | 1st Time Testers | Percentage Passing | Percentage Passing |
| January 2015-December 2015 | 11 | 100% | 69% |
| January 2016-December 2016 | 13 | 92% | 68% |
| January 2017-December 2017 | 10 | 90% | 70% |
Graduate Employment Stats
Graduate follow up is conducted 6 months following graduation. Recent follow up data for Western’s Health Information Technology program graduates are as follows:
|
2015
|
2016
|
2017
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Graduates | 12 | 13 | 8 |
| Graduates Responding | 7 | 10 | 4 |
| Employed in Related Occupation | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Employed in Non-related Occupation | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seeking Employment | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Continuing Education | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Not in Labor Market | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Graduation Rates
| Graduation Year |
2016
|
2017
|
2018
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Students Entering/Graduating |
16/13
|
15/8
|
12/10
|
| Graduation Rate |
81%
|
53%
|
83%
|
Revised: September 2018
Additional Information
Program Contact
Tamra Brown
Program Chair, Health Information Technology
608-785-9549
BrownT@westerntc.edu [6]
Courses
The following list is not the official course list for this program. It is intended to give students an idea of what coursework will be required.
Current students should use the MyWestern [7] self-service portal when registering for class.