Medical Records and Health Information Technician

Working Schedule

• Medical Records and Health Information Technicians typically work full-time and may be tasked to work nights, weekends, and holidays, depending on the facility where they’re employed. 

Typical Duties

• Offer medical intake forms for patients to complete and return; prepare discharge forms
• Review forms for accuracy and completeness
• Process patient files and forms 
• Enter personal data and history into a range of databases, special purpose registries, and other platforms
• Determine the proper disposition of files
• Assign and review internal and standardized clinical codes to various paperwork
• Work closely with clerical and medical staff, as well as administrators and managers
• Process medical billing claims and prepare forms

Additional Responsibilities

• Ensure confidential files are secured and protected against unauthorized disclosure
• Maintain hard and soft copy records management systems and follow best practices to keep files safe, organized, and indexed for easy retrieval  
• Track patient outcomes and provide treatment data to authorized employees, as needed
• Collaborate with and answer questions from nurses, doctors, and other medical team members

Analytical 

• Compassionate and empathetic to patient needs
• Customer service-oriented
• Focused on details
• Independent 
• High degree of integrity
• Keen organizational skills
• Patience
• Resilience and composure 
• Security-conscious 
• Sound judgment and decision-making, sometimes under pressure
• Strong communication skills, including active listening and clear speech
• Normal eyesight

Technical Skills

• Good with numbers and codes
• Familiar with accounting and billing software 
• Excellent with records management and information security
• Comfortable using software related to business, science, and healthcare
• Adept at scheduling
• Strong computer and office equipment skills, including use of printers, scanners, and photocopy equipment
• Adept with speech recognition and dictation programs

• Hospitals and clinics
• Private practice offices
• Nursing homes
• Other admin, support, and technical areas

Medical Records and Health Information Technicians must be extremely diligent, methodical, and focused when dealing with forms and files. They’re expected to maintain a very high degree of accuracy while also ensuring all safeguards are implemented to keep information safe yet accessible to those who need it. Specific work locations may require evening and weekend shifts, as well as work during the holidays. 

As citizens continue to live longer, their medical needs place increasing demands on busy healthcare facilities. Medical Records and Health Information Technicians will stay in high demand and be tasked with potentially larger workloads, in addition to being required to learn new technologies aimed at increasing efficiency and effectiveness. These workers are on the frontlines of data management and insurance billing. Those with demonstrated proficiency and advanced certifications may have greater job prospects. 

Medical Records and Health Information Technicians tend to be analytical and may have enjoyed working with puzzles and figures. They’re highly organized and procedural, which are characteristics likely developed early on, perhaps due to high levels of household responsibility as children. They may have stood out in math or programming classes at school and enjoyed organizing activities and events. Workers in this field must also care deeply about the people behind the data and numbers, and so may have always had a strong urge to help others.