Because of several factors and advances in technology the Employment Outlook for Healthcare Informatics technicians is positive for the foreseeable future. That is good news for anyone considering a career in the field. Sometimes the field of informatics in healthcare is confused with nursing informatics, but they are two separate professions. To understand the professional opportunities, it is necessary to understand the difference in the two careers.
What is Informatics?
Informatics is actually a science, but also an application of the science. According to a definition found on Wikipedia, it is “the interdisciplinary study of the design, development, adoption and application of IT-based innovations in healthcare services delivery, management and planning.” A study of the careers in informatics defines the term as the application of computer technologies to healthcare, and the term applies to everything from the delivery of healthcare services at the clinic level to the finances of medical institutions.
Nursing Informatics
The use of Electronic Health Records has revolutionized medical care. The American government even provided financial incentives to facilitate the changeover for clinics, private practitioners and hospitals from paper to data-based records. That is because EHRs are universally available and patient outcomes are more favorable because information is available to everyone on the treatment team, at every location.
Nursing informatics also includes robotics and the use of diagnostic instruments like those that automatically take vital signs and enter the information into patient records. Nursing education is drastically different today than it was fifty years ago because nurses are taught how to incorporate the available technology into patient care.
Health Informatics
This is the extension of the clinical application of computer technology in the business side of healthcare. The created EHR is used by doctors to access information about things like allergies and prior procedures when treating patients. Then, that information is used to bill the patient and insurance to reimburse the facility for the provision of the service. In addition, there are regulations that govern the way clinics and hospitals can operate and charge. Informatics makes compliance with those regulations much easier because it can process the information quickly and more thoroughly than a person could. Health informatics deals with budgetary restraints, cost-efficient operation, equipment storage, maintenance and replacement and with staffing, among other issues in running the business of a healthcare facility.
Why Informatics Careers Have Promising Futures
There are several factors involved in the projected growth of informatics careers. One factor is the mandated health insurance program, dubbed “Obamacare.” More people are seeking healthcare treatment now that they are insured. In addition, the “Boomer” generation is aging and in need of more health services.
If you are pursuing a career in health informatics, or the business side of the science, the projected growth rate of jobs available to you is 15 percent, which is higher than average. The median wage for technicians, according to the BLS, is $35,900. Other sources, though, say geographic location of the job and tenure play a large roll in salary and give $60,692 as a median wage. Considering benefits and bonuses, that salary can be as high as $91,096.
If you enjoy working with computers and figures, a career in informatics may be for you. Many of these positions do not require a four-year degree but, if you are studying finance or accounting, it would be wise to add a concentration in healthcare. The Employment Outlook for Healthcare Informatics is projected to grow for some time, and that makes this a great career choice
