Medical and Health Information Tech Jobs

Training and Education Jobs and Salaries

Medical records and health information technicians hold about 170,000 jobs. About two out of five jobs are in hospitals. The rest are mostly in offices of physicians, nursing care facilities, outpatient care centers, and home health care services. Insurance firms that deal in health matters employ a small number of health information technicians to tabulate and analyze health information. Public health departments also employ technicians to supervise data collection from health care institutions and to assist in research.

Employment of medical records techs is expected to grow faster than average. Job prospects should be very good and technicians with a strong background in medical coding will be in particularly high demand. Employment of medical records and health information technicians is expected to increase by 18 percent through 2016 - faster than the average for all occupations - because of rapid growth in the number of medical tests, treatments, and procedures that will be increasingly scrutinized by health insurance companies, regulators, courts, and consumers.

Medical t echnicians will also be needed to enter patient information into computer databases to comply with Federal legislation mandating the use of electronic medical records. New jobs are expected in offices of physicians as a result of increasing demand for detailed records, especially in large group practices. New jobs also are expected in home health care services, outpatient care centers, and nursing and residential care facilities.

Although employment growth in hospitals will not keep pace with growth in other health care industries, many new jobs will, nevertheless, be created. Cancer registrars should experience job growth as well. As the population continues to age, the incidence of cancer may increase. In general, job prospects should be very good for medical records and health information technicians. In addition to job growth, openings will result from the need to replace technicians who retire or leave the occupation permanently.

Technicians with a strong background in medical coding will be in particularly high demand. Changing government regulations and the growth of managed care have increased the amount of paperwork involved in filing insurance claims. Additionally, health care facilities are having some difficulty attracting qualified workers, primarily because employers prefer trained and experienced technicians prepared to work in an increasingly electronic environment with the integration of electronic health records. Job opportunities may be especially good for coders employed through temporary help agencies or by professional services firms.

Medical records and health information technicians work in pleasant and comfortable offices. This is one of the few health-related occupations in which there is little or no direct contact with patients. Because accuracy is essential in their jobs, technicians must pay close attention to detail. Technicians who work at computer monitors for prolonged periods must guard against eyestrain and muscle pain. Medical records and health information technicians usually work a 40-hour week but some overtime may be required. In hospitals - where health information departments often are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - technicians may work day, evening, and night shifts.

Median annual earnings of medical records and health information technicians are above $28,000. The middle 50 percent earn between $22,000 and $36,000 yearly. The lowest 10 percent earn less than $19,060, and the highest 10 percent earn more than $45,260. Medical records and health information technicians need a strong clinical background to analyze the contents of medical records. Medical secretaries and medical transcriptionists are two related occupations which also require knowledge about medical terminology, anatomy, and physiology even though they have little or no direct contact with patients.