Health Info Tech. Degree (HIT)

Associate of Applied Science Degree

A Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) specializes in evaluating, con-trolling, and maintaining the information contained in all types of health records. Career opportunities include positions in group practices, long-term care facilities, hospital health information management departments, attorneys’ offices, health maintenance organizations, professional review organizations, ambulatory care facilities, public health agencies, mental health facilities, and many others. The positions include all aspects of medical record technical-level tasks: medical office management and super-vision, filing and retrieval, analyzing, coding, indexing, compiling statistics, answering subpoenas, utilization review, quality assessment, medical research, legal correspondence, abstracting, and compiling and presenting medical data through the use of computer-based systems.

The health information technology curriculum is consistent with and responsive to the demonstrated needs and expectations of the health care community served by Morton College.

Program Learning Outcomes

The primary goal of the HIT degree program is to prepare competent entry-level health information technicians in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains. The health information curriculum encompasses the following areas, demonstrated by the successful graduate of the HIT program:

• The ability to apply the concepts of computer based and other electronic technology related to health care, including the use of database software applications and other tools and techniques for collecting, storing, and retrieving health care data;
• The ability to accurately assign diagnostic and procedural codes and use the appropriate classification systems to correlate the timeliness, completeness, and accuracy of this type of data to reimbursement data for the health care facility;
• The ability to apply principles of organization and supervision in order to develop effective skills in leadership, motivation, and team-building techniques for effective monitoring of health information management staff;
• The ability to apply principles of legal and ethical behavior as they relate to issues applicable to legal aspects of health information, including an appreciation for the Morton core values;
• The ability to interpret and apply rules for security, confidentiality, retention, integrity, and access of health information;
• The ability to perform and participate in health information analysis tasks such as abstracting data and calculating, interpreting, and presenting statistics and other data.

Program Options

1. Medical Billing and Coding Certificate
2. Medical Transcriptionist Certificate
3. A.A.S. Degree in Health Information Technology

Requirements for Degree

Required

General Education Courses

CPS 111	Business Computer Systems	3
MAT 102	General Education Mathematics	4
SPE 101	Principles of Public Speaking	3
PHI 126	Introduction to Ethics	3
ENG 101	Rhetoric I	3
PSY 101	Introduction to Psychology	3
BIO 152	Anatomy & Physiology (therapie	5
	Behavior/Social Science Elective	3

Total Credit Hours: 63