Health informatics and information management are two of the fastest-growing fields in today’s job market. There are several reasons for this growth, including the Affordable Care Act mandate that requires the electric filing of medical records. To adjust to these new standards, skilled informatics professionals are being hired at all levels. Careers in this field are ideal for many, with a combination of demand, high salaries and room for growth. If you are interested in using technology to meet the needs of healthcare organizations and improve patient care quality, a career in health informatics may be right for you.

Employers hiring health informatics professionals usually require a bachelor’s degree for most positions. Though many individuals later decide to earn a master’s degree or certificate to increase their employment opportunities, a bachelor’s degree in health informatics or a related field is what you need to get started. This health information technology salary guide can give you an idea of what to expect from your career.

Types of Health Information Careers

If you’re unsure of what you can do with a health informatics degree, here are some areas within the field that you can choose from. Salaries can vary by years of experience and region of employment, but these numbers are representative of what you can expect from similar roles. All salary information comes from the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA).

• Healthcare IT: As with any type of information technology role, this type of health informatics professional is responsible for the hardware and software a company uses. Responsibilities include installing servers and troubleshooting technology when issues arise. These professionals usually have programming training and work to ensure that operations within healthcare organizations run smoothly from a technological standpoint.

• Informatics: Of course, a degree in health informatics qualifies you for these types of careers. Informatics professionals in healthcare analyze and interpret clinical data and medical information. They also develop and implement health information systems related to electronic health records. Most of the work health informatics professionals do involves identifying the data needs of organizations, monitoring data quality and coordinating with IT teams to complete tech processes for medical claims transactions, data collection and integration.
• Insurance and Pharmaceuticals: These types of companies have high-demand data management and analysis needs that make them strong employers of health informatics graduates. Professionals work with software like Access and SAS to analyze and process data. They can also work with a team of actuaries or business professionals to provide tech support and assist them in understanding clinical data and other health information.
• Consulting and Government: As you gain experience with business operations and data coordination, you can also work for consulting firms and hospitals. Health information professionals are also in demand by government agencies for positions related to public health.

Health Informatics at King University

If you are interested in pursuing these types of careers, earning your online degree at King University is a great place to start. We offer a Bachelor of Science in Health Informatics that combines courses from the healthcare administration, information technology and health informatics curriculum. You’ll study need-to-know topics like health care organization, information systems, project management, ethics and quality improvement.