Health Info Tech transfer program lets students complete degree locally

Students have an additional option for a healthcare career at Beaufort County Community College with the Health Information Technology program. BCCC has renewed its transfer agreement with Pitt Community College so that students can take one year of classes at Beaufort before transferring to Pitt to finish an Associate in Applied Science in Health Information Technology online. The program will place students locally for their clinical practice during their second year.

The Health Information Technology curriculum provides students with the knowledge and skills to process, analyze, abstract, compile, maintain, manage and report health information. Students will supervise departmental functions; classify, code and index diagnoses and procedures; coordinate information for cost control, quality management, statistics, marketing, and planning; monitor governmental and non-governmental standards; facilitate research; and design system controls to monitor patient information security.

“There is a lot that goes into managing a healthcare operation, as we are currently seeing with vaccination drives,” said Kent Dickerson, Director of Nursing and Allied Health at BCCC. “For each person who gets vaccinated by a healthcare worker, someone had to work behind the scenes to make sure that vaccines were shipped in a timely manner, consent forms were completed, that the right quantity is available and that health departments are vaccinating at the rate needed to suppress the virus on a national level. Health info techs have helped to sort these statistics and logistics to help public health officials contain this epidemic.”

Graduates of this program may be eligible to write the national certification examination to become a Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT).

Positions in Health Information Tech are available in hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, nursing homes, health insurance organizations, outpatient clinics, physicians’ offices, hospice and mental health facilities.

In-person and online registration is now taking place for Summer 2021 and Fall 2021 classes. Call 252-940-6233 to get started.