News

January 19, 2006
ECC Adds Certificate Program in Health Information

 
Health Information Technology Department Chair Kim Bell works closely with Kristy Wallace, who completed the HIT degree program in May.

Edgecombe Community College has added a new certificate offering to its Health Information Technology (HIT) program.

     A certificate in Protected Health Information is being added to the slate of spring 2006 offerings. The PHI certificate curriculum was developed to provide health care professionals with specific training on the importance of data quality in all health care settings for patient information privacy and security.

     "This certificate will strengthen the skills of any individual who requires basic knowledge of patient information in any health care setting," says Kim Bell, chair of Health Information Technology at ECC. "Health information specialists, clerical support staff, and health care providers will benefit from the extra training, as will staff who work in business offices, patient admitting, or billing and reimbursement."

      The training would be applicable to all health care settings, from small doctors' offices to large academic medical centers.

      ECC's Health Information Technology program is a unique curriculum, both to the college and to its profession. It is one of only three Web-based HIT curriculums in the state. Others are at Pitt and Central Piedmont community colleges. However, ECC's HIT program is the only one in the state that offers a degree option, a diploma option, and two certificate options. Pitt offers a degree option, and Central Piedmont offers a degree and two certificate options. In addition, ECC's HIT program is one of just 17 accredited online HIT programs in the nation.

      All HIT courses are available online with the exception of classes at clinical sites, which require on-site hands-on learning, but course documentation to support clinicals is online as well. Courses required for the new Protected Health Information certificate also will be online offerings. The new certificate requires 18 semester hours of course work.

      The college offers three other options for individuals interested in a career as a health information technologist. Completion of the two-year Associate of Applied Science degree (76 semester hours) qualifies graduates to sit for the national certification exam. HIT Coding diploma (48 semester hours) and HIT Coding certificate (18 semester hours) programs also are available.

     "Our society is dependent upon data and information," adds Bell. "The role of the health information management professional is to establish functional systems that manage health information wherever the patient needs may be. Changing technology is not only changing the face of health care, but also the access, transport, and storage of health care information."

      To learn more about HIT at ECC, go to http://www.edgecombe.edu/academics/alldhlth/hit/hit.htm. Read more about the health information profession at http://www.ahima.org, the Web site of the American Health Information Management Association.

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