In January, the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) endorsed the Canadian College of Health Information Management’s (College) modernized standards and certifications.

CIHI’s endorsement recognizes the importance of certified health information professionals in ensuring the supply of high-quality health data and information in Canada. The significance of this recognition is two-pronged. First, it reinforces the legitimacy of certified health information professionals in Canada. Second, it underscores the College’s modernized standards as a foundation of quality education and professional development for health information professionals in the country.

What are the College’s modernized standards?

The College’s modernized standards combine remodelled professional certifications with badges and micro-credentials for an expanding audience of new and existing professionals (e.g., doctors, researchers, technology workers, etc.). The new standards bring:

• a distinction between the generalized knowledge of health information and specialized knowledge, such as medical coding,
• an opportunity to focus on and build modernized medical coding academic standards, and
• more pathways for students, current professionals, and new professionals to become certified.

So, what does this mean for you, the CHIM professional?

Now, more than ever, your CHIM certification is elevated as the pathway designation for the health information profession in Canada. Employers and human resource departments nationwide continue to consider the CHIM certification a key criterion in job descriptions and hiring decisions.

Like other model certifications (CFA, PMP, CBAP), the CHIM designation will become an in-demand certification, spotlighting the greater need for certified health information professionals in health care teams and decision-making tables across Canada.

The benefit of the new standards and endorsement reaches beyond health care and into non-traditional fields like the justice system, technology and biotechnology companies, and veterinary medicine, where the unique skills of the CHIM professional are valued in ensuring compliance with privacy laws and regulations.

Your investment in quality education and certification is yielding unprecedented benefits, and the College continues to advance its advocacy efforts to bring a greater awareness and need for health information professionals.