The federal government’s mandate for a new healthcare information era is creating an explosion of opportunities within the health information management field. Because of this growing need to produce an educated and qualified workforce, the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) has surpassed its projected six percent year-to-date membership growth – topping the 60,000 mark despite the dismal state of the economy – with three months remaining in the 2010 fiscal year.
“When I joined AHIMA in 1980 as a member there were 23,000 members,” said AHIMA COO Sandy Fuller. “In 1997, when I joined the staff there were just under 38,000 members, so it’s very exciting to hit this 60,000 mark.”
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act include initiatives that require a skilled workforce so funding is available to assist with education. There is an increased value for higher education in all fields, especially health information, which offers tremendous future employment opportunities. And AHIMA’s largest area of growth has been with student memberships, which has been driven by the downturn in the economy.
“At a time of such great change in healthcare and in our profession, it is great to see this validation of the success of our members in the market and the value our Association brings to them,” said Fuller.