Mar 28, 2024  
2020-2021 Saint Joseph’s College Online Catalog 
    
2020-2021 Saint Joseph’s College Online Catalog [Archived Catalog]

Health Information Management Major


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This online degree  program provides students the education and skills to be a health information manager/administrator.  

This program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). Students successfully completing this program will be eligible to take the Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) exam and become credentialed through the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA).  Students will be required to complete a Professional Practice Experience, which will require them to identify a local healthcare site and site manager, as well as to purchase access to the virtual lab for use in the Advanced Practicum course.  The internship on a site will require the student to meet all of the requirements of a physical clearance, current TB test, current immunizations and often a drug screen and background check.  The student is responsible for completing these at their own expense.

Students completing this program will:

  • Be recognized as an expert in managing patient health information and health records, administering computer information systems, collecting and analyzing patient data, and using classification systems and medical terminologies.
  • Possess comprehensive knowledge of medical, administrative, ethical and legal requirements and standards related to health care delivery and the privacy of protected patient information.
  • Manage people and operational units, participate in administrative committees, as well as to prepare and manage budgets.
  • Have the ability to Interact with all levels of an organization - clinical, financial, administrative, and information systems - that employ patient data in decision-making and every day operations.
  • Be prepared to take the exam to obtain the RHIA credential through AHIMA.

The major consists of a total of 120 semester-hour credits. 

 

General Education Requirements - HIM


The college’s general education curriculum is a set of courses that reflect the college’s vision of what it means to be an educated person.  It is the heart of our baccalaureate education, and provides the grounding for the student’s major course of study. The core curriculum supports key parts of the college’s mission: to encourage students to explore widely the arts and sciences while they also prepare to lead ethical and meaningful lives and to enhance students’ awareness of human dignity and the meaning of life.  Moreover, the general education curriculum supports several of SJC’s Institutional Learning Outcomes.  Specifically:

  • Identify and apply the ethical and moral dimensions of their particular field of study;
  • Demonstrate effective communication skills in both written and oral formats;
  • Engage in responsible citizenship, social justice, and environmental stewardship;
  • Demonstrate critical thinking skills and the ability to analyze and evaluate information from diverse sources and perspectives.

The new requirements consist of four learning themes: Foundations for College Level Thinking, The Human Condition and Human Story, Nature & Society, and Art, Creativity, and Self-Knowledge.  The online general education requirements are aligned with the on-campus core.  Note: Some academic programs have minor variations in general education requirements. Please talk to your Advisor or Admissions Counselor for more information.  

 

General Education Requirements (42 credits)
Foundations for College Level Thinking (3 courses)

EH 106 , English Composition I

EH 107 ,  English Composition II

MA 205 , Elementary Statistics

The Human Condition and the Human Story (6 courses)

PH 200    Human Nature and Ethics

TH 120 , Embracing the Mercy Tradition

HY History Elective 

History (HY)/Psychology (PY)/Theology (TH) Electives - 9 credits


Nature and Society (3 courses)

ES 101 ,  Introduction to Environmental Science

HIM 200 , Intro to Anatomy & Physiology

HIM 211  , Pharmacology

Art, Creativity, and Self-Knowledge (2 courses)

6 credits ACS, Art, Creativity, Self-Knowledge (ACS electives    )

General Electives


Students must complete 27 credits of general elective courses, some of which may be health administration courses.  In most cases, if a student has completed an associate’s degree in health information technology the transferred courses will meet this requirement.  If courses are needed, students are encouraged to take health administration courses as electives, but they are not required to do so.

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