AHIMA adds to growing list of accredited certifications
The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) announced Thursday two more of its programs have been accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA).
The Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) and the Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) certification programs will now join AHIMA's Certified Coding Associate (CCA) program certified by NCCA in 2010.
According to AHIMA's Vice President of Certification Services Michael Niederpruem the additional certification programs make AHIMA "the solid industry leader" in accredited HIIM certification programs.
"Third-party accreditation of AHIMA’s prestigious RHIT and RHIA certification programs by the NCCA further validates AHIMA’s status as the industry leader in assuring competence of HI professionals worldwide,” Niederpruem said. “NCCA’s accreditation enhances AHIMA’s value to both employers and candidates and defines us as the gold standard for certification exams that assure competence in both HIT and HIM. Currently, there are not any other HIM focused certifications with this accreditation, which gives our already respected credentials even more credibility.”
[See also: AHIMA charts course for protecting patient data.]
The NCCA accredits programs that certify individuals in a wide range of professions and occupations including nurses, financial professionals, respiratory therapists, counselors, emergency technicians, crane operators and more.
The NCCA accreditation process involves a comprehensive evaluation of the certifying agency; characteristics of the certification program; information required to be available to applicants, certificants, and the public; and recertification initiatives of the certifying agency.
To maintain NCCA accreditation, certification bodies such as AHIMA are required to consistently adhere to a set of requirements or procedures related to quality, openness, and due process. AHIMA is part of an elite group of 100 or so organizations that have received and maintained NCCA accreditation.
[See also: AHIMA claims unique role in workforce arena.]
