Activities	Compile, process, and maintain medical records of hospital and clinic patients in a manner consistent with medical, administrative, ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements of the healthcare system.
Outlook	Faster-than-average-job growth
Median Income	$30,600 per year in 2008
Work Context & Conditions	Medical records and health information technicians usually work a 40-hour week. In hospitals (where health information departments often are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week) technicians may work day, evening, and night shifts.
Minimum Education Requirements	Associate's Degree
Skills	Writing, Active Listening, Time Management, Reading Comprehension, Speaking
Abilities	Oral Expression, Written Comprehension, Oral Comprehension

Job Category		Office & Administrative Support
Job Description		Every time healthcare personnel treat a patient, they record what they observed, and how the patient was treated medically. This record includes information the patient provides concerning their symptoms and medical history, the results of examinations, reports of X-ays and laboratory tests, diagnoses, and treatment plans. Medical records and health information technicians organize and evaluate these records for completeness and accuracy. Medical records and health information technicians begin to assemble patients' health information by first making sure their initial medical charts are complete. They ensure all forms are completed and properly identified and signed, and all necessary information is in the computer. Sometimes, they communicate with physicians or others to clarify diagnoses or get additional information. Technicians assign a code to each diagnosis and procedure. They consult classification manuals and rely, also, on their knowledge of disease processes. Technicians then use a software program to assign the patient to one of several hundred "diagnosis-related groups," or DRG's. The DRG determines the amount the hospital will be reimbursed if the patient is covered by Medicare or other insurance programs using the DRG system. Technicians who specialize in coding are called health information coders, medical record coders, coder/abstractors, or coding specialists. In addition to the DRG system, coders use other coding systems, such as those geared towards ambulatory settings. Technicians also use computer programs to tabulate and analyze data to help improve patient care, control costs, for use in legal actions, in response to surveys, or for use in research studies. Tumor registrars compile and maintain records of patients who have cancer to provide information to physicians and for research studies. Medical records and health information technicians' duties vary with the size of the facility. In large to medium facilities, technicians may specialize in one aspect of health information, or supervise health information clerks and transcriptionists while a medical records and health information administrator manages the department. In small facilities, a credentialed medical records and health information technician sometimes manages the department.
Working Conditions		Medical records and health information technicians work in pleasant and comfortable offices. This is one of the few health occupations in which there is little or no physical contact with patients. Because accuracy is essential, technicians must pay close attention to detail. Technicians who work at computer monitors for prolonged periods must guard against eyestrain and muscle pain.
Salary Range		Median annual earnings of medical records and health information technicians were $30,600 in 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $24,300 and $39,500. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $20,400, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $60,400. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of medical records and health information technicians in 2008 were: General medical and surgical hospitals - $32,600; Nursing care facilities - $30,660; Outpatient care centers - $29,160; and Offices of physicians - $26,210.

Education Required		Medical records and health information technicians entering the field usually have an associate degree from a community or junior college. In addition to general education, coursework includes medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, legal aspects of health information, coding and abstraction of data, statistics, database management, quality improvement methods, and computer training. Applicants can improve their chances of admission into a program by taking biology, chemistry, health, and computer science courses in high school. Most employers prefer to hire Registered Health Information Technicians (RHIT), who must pass a written examination offered by American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). Experienced medical records and health information technicians usually advance in one of two ways—by specializing or managing. Many senior technicians specialize in coding, particularly Medicare coding, or in tumor registry. In large medical records and health information departments, experienced technicians may advance to section supervisor, overseeing the work of the coding, correspondence, or discharge sections, for example. Senior technicians with RHIT credentials may become director or assistant director of a medical records and health information department in a small facility.
Recommended High School Courses		Computers and Electronics, Biology, Chemistry, Health
Postsecondary Instructional Programs		English Language, Mathematics, Computers and Electronics, Clerical
Certification and Licensing		Most employers prefer to hire RHIT, who must pass a written examination offered by AHIMA. To take the examination, a person must graduate from a 2-year associate degree program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) of the American Medical Association. Technicians trained in non-CAAHEP accredited programs, or on the job, are not eligible to take the examination. In 2007, CAAHEP accredited 245 programs for health information technicians. Technicians who specialize in coding may also obtain voluntary certification.

Interest Area		Conventional Involves following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. There's usually a clear line of authority to follow.
Work Values		Moral Values Never pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong. Security Have steady employment. Working Conditions Good working conditions. Activity Busy all the time.
Skills		Writing Communicate effectively with others in writing as indicated by the needs of the audience. Active Listening Listen to what other people are saying and ask questions as appropriate. Time Management Manage one's own time and the time of others. Reading Comprehension Understand written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. Speaking Talk to others to effectively convey information.
Abilities		Oral Expression Able to convey information and ideas through speech in ways that others will understand. Written Comprehension Able to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. Oral Comprehension Able to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Related Jobs		Medical Transcriptionist, Technician, Pharmacy
Job Outlook		Job prospects for formally trained technicians should be very good. Employment of medical records and health information technicians is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2018, due to rapid growth in the number of medical tests, treatments, and procedures which will be increasingly scrutinized by third-party payers, regulators, courts, and consumers. Hospitals will continue to employ a large percentage of health information technicians, but growth will not be as fast as in other areas. Increasing demand for detailed records in offices and clinics of physicians should result in fast employment growth, especially in large group practices. Rapid growth is also expected in nursing homes and home health agencies. Medical records and health information technicians held about 172,500 jobs in 2008. About 39 percent of jobs were in hospitals. The rest were mostly in nursing homes, medical group practices, clinics, and home health agencies. Insurance firms that deal in health matters employ a small number of health information technicians to tabulate and analyze health information. Public health departments also hire technicians to supervise data collection from healthcare institutions and to assist in research.
More Information		American Health Information Management Association, Committee on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
References		Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, Medical Records and Health Information Technicians, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos103.htm O*NET OnLine, on the Internet at http://online.onetcenter.org/link/summary/29-2071.00