Health information management professionals will need more education to succeed in a fast-changing healthcare environment, new research has found.<\/p>\n
Advanced educational credentials such as a master\u2019s degree<\/a> will be particularly valuable for informatics- and analytics-related roles in clinical settings, according to the study published in the Journal of AHIMA, the official publication of the American Health Information Management Association.<\/p>\n Health information management (HIM) professionals \u201cmust have the body of knowledge and practice to ensure the completeness, availability, accuracy, and integrity of health information to facilitate real-time healthcare delivery and critical health-related decision-making,\u201d the study noted.<\/p>\n The association<\/a>, which has more than 103,000 members worldwide, commissioned a survey of nearly 300 senior-level HIM professionals working in clinical and nonclinical settings as part of its HIM Reimagined initiative. Among respondents in clinical settings, 41% said their current HIM workforce was only \u201csomewhat or not very well prepared\u201d for the organization\u2019s future needs.<\/p>\n About half of respondents were at least \u201cvery concerned\u201d about their employees\u2019 skill sets<\/a>, including hard skills such as technology and statistics, and softs skills such as communication, problem solving and teamwork.<\/p>\n Among respondents in clinical settings, 40% said a master\u2019s degree would best prepare HIM professionals for informatics roles, while 33% said a master\u2019s would best prepare candidates for analytics roles.<\/p>\n The study\u2019s findings<\/a>, released in May 2018, validate the HIM Reimagined recommendation \u201cfor specialization and educational advancement\u201d among health information management professionals.<\/p>\n Employment opportunities continue to grow for health information and technology professionals, the 2018 HIMSS U.S. Leadership and Workforce Survey<\/a> found. Among hospital leaders who responded to the survey, 37% said their health IT workforce had increased over 2017 and 34% said they were still looking to add employees.<\/p>\n Nationwide, about 1 in 9 jobs require candidates to have a master\u2019s degree or higher, up more than 60% over the past 40 years, according to the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.<\/p>\n Federal statistics show projected job growth of 6.5% across all occupations from 2014 to 2024. But jobs requiring at least a master\u2019s degree will increase by 13.8% during that decade, making it the fastest-growing segment by entry-level education.<\/p>\nRising Academic Requirements<\/h3>\n