A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

To get a job with an RHIA - JC

Posted: Sep 21, 2012

would I need a Bachelor's degree in something else. I have seen this as a qualification on some jobs. To be honest, I am not sure what jobs would be open to me if I had an RHIA. Any help and/or direction is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

An RHIA is a BA or BS - RHIA

[ In Reply To ..]
No, you would a NOT need a bachelor's in something else. The RHIA reflects that you have a bachelor's.

You can do anything in medical records, like coding, privacy, release of information, file room, record analysis, data management and analysis, clinical documentation improvement, compliance, or informatics.

Go to the American Health Information Maagement Association website and find the career information. Look for the salary surveys, too.

ok, wait... - coding student

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm a little confused by both the question and the answer by "RHIA". I already have a BA, and yet I'm considering going back for a BS at WGU vs the route of a post-bacc. certificate program as entre' to sit for the RHIA. Reason being that I'm not sure that the certificate is enough for someone brand new to the field. There are an awful lot of RHIAs out there right now, and even with a CCS I am not positive that I will be marketable enough for the types of jobs that I would want.

I'm looking to have the CCS credential, plus an RHIA, plus some of the certifications that WGU graduates earn. Are you sure that an RHIA plus a Bachelor's is enough? Perhaps you both are talking about someone who is already working in healthcare?

Confusion - RHIA

[ In Reply To ..]
I am confused by your post. I am not sure where you are getting your information, but it does not seem to be quite right.

What do you work in now? MT? If so, how can you say you have no healthcare experience?

Where are you getting the idea that there is a glut of RHIAs? Or that they have trouble getting a job? Or that you NEED certifications on top of that? (Not just nice-to-have or added-value, but NEED them as in can't-get-a-job-without-them.)

I am wondering f you are somehow applying what you may have been seeing about the RHIT to the RHIA.

The RHIA is the prime credential in health information administration. You must complete a bachelor's degree in HIA to sit for it. Or, if you aleady have a bachelor's, you can do a pstbaccalaureate certificate n HIA. The postbac is not substandard . . . you take the HIA courses from the bachelor's program. You do not have to repeat the rest of the bachelor's because you already did it.

You seem to be planning to go to school forever to ensure that you get a job. That should not be necessary. The CCS should get the job. You can work while getting the RHIA. The RHIA alone will get you a job, but the CCS is a lovely addition. I know several top-notch coders who are RHIAs with no additional credentials.

For YOU, the WGU health informatics is nice because it is an economical way to do health informatics. Most programs have minimal informatics.

I am confused by your question about "an RHIA plus a bachelor's" being enough. You cannot get an RHIA without a bachelor's. It is required. All RHIAs have a BA or BS. It is not a certification like a coding or privacy certification. It is more than that.

As for healthcare experience, how much healthcare experience do you think a college student has? HIA programs are college degree programs. They do not require healthcare experience. Most graduates have little to none.

As for the numbers of HIAs . . . look that up on the AHIMA website. Look up how many new RHIAs were awarded last year. It is the number of people who passed the exam and it is not all that large. (Look up pass rates.)

Got it- thank you! - coding student

[ In Reply To ..]
Thank you, RHIA. You made several good points here and clarified some situations I was apparently confused about.

It was my understanding that there were students graduating and passing the RHIA exam, yet who were not able to find or keep positions in their field because of their lack of coding knowledge. Preparation for and the achievement of the CCS credential for those students was what I understood the recommendation to be.

I certainly don't want to be in school forever, only it is so tempting top off my coding program at Andrews with WGU. It might end up taking the same amount of time as the post-bacc. certificate programs I've looked at and they seem very committed to their students' success.

I am not an MT.

Thank you again for your great reply; I really appreciate it!

Oh, ok. Now I see. - RHIA

[ In Reply To ..]
I see what you mean now.

What you heard is that there are RHIAs who can't code. They don't like it or it does not suit them, they wouldn't do it if their life depended on it, or something. If that is the case, they just do something else in HIA.

Health info admin is more than coding. You know that doctors are all trained the same in medicine and then they specialize. RHIAs are all trained the same and then they specialize.

Go to the AHIMA website and look up certifications. Those are all areas of specialization. They are functional areas in HI. Not ALL of them, though. Other functional areas are covered by the RHIA itself -- the general areas like records management, release of information, etc.

I know RHIAs who do only privacy and security. They hate coding. I know others who do informatics. Some, like me, can code and others never could. They never looked at again after their exam.

If you can't code or do not want to code, there is lots else to do. Believe me, there are no RHIAs being pushed out of HIA because of it.

I would love to do the WGU program, too. I am sorry you can't just do the informatics portion of it.

Informatics is where HIA is going, I think. WGU is just the first to focus on it while others still focus on paper records. For you, I think it would be a good choice. You will enjoy it and be well-prepared for the future. It is economical, especially if you are motivated to get through it. You probably can get through it very quickly with what you will know from Andrews and from your college degree.

Similar Messages:

Jul 30, 2014

Hi, I am thinking of getting a bachelor's degree in Health Information Management and becoming a certified RHIA. I was wondering if anyone currently working as a RHIA can tell me: 1) Is it hard to find a job after you finish school and get certified? 2) About how much money can you expect to make? Hi, I am thinking of getting a bachelor's degree in Health Information Management and becoming a certified RHIA. I was wondering if anyone currently working as a RHIA can tell ...

Jun 02, 2013

Has anyone here gone through WGU and become a RHIA? I am currently a RHIT, but I'm thinking of furthering my education. I really like computers and technology and I think this looks like a good program. I just wonder if RHIA is worth it because I see a lot of jobs require either RHIT or RHIA. ...

Jan 01, 2015

I can't stand this industry and what it has become. I am sick of making peanuts for thoughtless people. I will hold on to my job while I have to but I signed up to go back and finish my Bachelor's degree so I can become an RHIA and get into coding or corporate. I need more open doors. I have an A.A.S. in HIT but that hasn't opened many doors. ...

May 09, 2012

So, I'm confused and could use some advice. I am in an accredited HIT program all online to receive my AA degree and sit for the RHIT. I have just two semesters left to complete the program. I am very unhappy with the education I have received, and I am not sure I could even pass the RHIT. I am considering quitting this program and enrolling in a bachelor program where I can sit for the RHIA (it's a healthcare informatics degree through WGU). I am wonderin ...

Aug 13, 2012

I'm a former MT who has been in school working towards AA in HIT and will sit for my RHIT this winter. I am considering contiuing my education and getting my bachelor's degree and going for the RHIA, but is it worth it? I currently work in medical records and when I get my RHIT I will be a coder where I work. Two more years of school just seems daunting and exhausting to me, but then I wonder if RHIA would be a good career move. Any thoughts? ...

Jan 30, 2014

I am thinking about going into health informatics. I've been looking at the program through WGU. Through their program, you complete your CCA credential before graduation. You would also qualify for your RHIA certification when you graduate. They state that a CCS or CCA credential will satisfy the coding courses in the program. Would it be better to do the coding portion of the informatics degree through a program that prepares you to pass the CCS and CPC (like Andrews) or would you know ad ...

Sep 28, 2012

I learned yesterday that the TSU post baccaulaureate certificate requires only 15 hours. Wow. I can't stop thinking about it. I'm going to see if I can get accepted (yes I live in Texas). ...

Jul 25, 2013

Which school (that offers the program online) is the best to get an RHIA besides Western Governor's University? I'm not interested in going there. ...

Feb 19, 2014

I am a current MT and am looking to start the transition to coding/HIM. I already have a bachelor's degree in business. I know I would like to work in hospital coding, at least initially, so I want a very good foundation in coding. This always leads me to Andrews school, as I definitely want to obtain the CCS to help my prospects. However, I am also open to other possible opportunities in HIM, and it seems that an HIM degree/RHIT or RHIA would be beneficial to have in tha ...