Five Top Skills Every Health Information Management (HIM) Professional Needs in 2025

From medical billing and coding to health information specialists, medical records roles, registrars, and support services, the Health Information Management (HIM) field offers a variety of unique career paths — and the job outlook is growing much faster than other occupations.  

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is predicting the employment of medical records specialists to grow 9% between now and 2033, and for health information technologists and medical registrars employment is forecast to grow 16% in the same time period. 

While the job titles and duties within the field vary, they all have responsibilities that are essential to the daily operations of various healthcare organizations. They’re the bridge between the clinical and administrative sides of healthcare, and they directly impact the quality of patient care. 

What is a Job in Health Information Management (HIM) Like? 

Health information is the data related to someone’s medical history, this can include their symptoms, procedures, outcomes, diagnoses, lab results, X-rays, clinical information, and much more. Health Information Management (HIM) combines business, science, and information technology to acquire, analyze, and protect medical information. 

HIM professionals are expected to manage and organize patient data, ensure the data is accurate, maintain security and privacy, work with electronic health record (EHR) systems, collaborate with other healthcare professionals, support billing and reimbursement, stay up-to-date on regulations, and more. 

What Skills Do You Need to Work in a Health Information Management (HIM) Role? 

To excel in a Health Information Management (HIM) job, you need a number of soft (interpersonal) skills and hard (technical) skills. In this article, we’re going to explore five skills essential for this field and why they’re so important. 

Analytical Skills

It’s essential to have analytical skills while working in a health information management role. You have to be able to interpret data and use their findings to suggest improvements. 

Attention to Detail 

It’s all in the details, and that’s especially true for this field of work. You must be precise when working with clinical data to ensure that patient information is documented, transferred, and stored correctly and securely. Making a mistake in a patient’s records or suffering a data breach can be detrimental to the patient and the healthcare organization. 

Integrity

When working with patient data, you need to have discretion and act ethically. Health information professionals are trusted to handle private information responsibility, that includes understanding and complying with any relevant laws, regulations, and standards, such as HIPAA. 

Teamwork and Collaboration

The healthcare field involves a seemingly endless number of professions, and if you want to work in the healthcare information management part of the industry you must be able to communicate and collaborate with other healthcare professionals. That could include doctors, nurses, insurance companies, patients, and more. 

Problem-solving and Critical Thinking Skills

Strong problem-solving and critical thinking skills really matter in this field. You’ll run into challenges like keeping up with changing compliance standards and technology changes, or resolving discrepancies in medical records or bills, and more. Critical thinking helps you step back, look at the bigger picture, and figure out what’s really going on. You need to be able to identify the root cause of a problem and find a practical solution. 

Is Health Information Management (HIM) the Career Path for You? Find Out with Bryan University! 

If you’re still here, then you’re probably thinking that a career in the Health Information Management (HIM) field might be the right fit for you. If you’re still on the fence, ask yourself the following questions. 

• Do you want to work in healthcare, but not directly with patients? 
• Do you like working with other healthcare professionals? 
• Do you want a career where you can choose to work with others, on your own, or a mix of both? 
• Do you see yourself in a field with diverse career paths? 
• Are you drawn to science, but also have an interest working with management, law, and technology? 

Are you ready to take the next step in exploring careers in the HIM field? At Bryan University, our Associate of Science in Health Information Management and Support Services is online, accelerated, and accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). It provides the knowledge and skills you need to be job-ready at graduation, including hands-on experience with industry tools like EHRgo, AHIMA Virtual Lab, and the Solventum Coding and Reimbursement System. It also includes preparation for AHIMA’s CCA and RHIT certifications — and our associate degree tuition covers an exam attempt for each one! 

Another BU perk — stackable programs! If you aren’t ready to enroll in an associate’s degree program, check out our Medical Billing and Coding Undergraduate Certificate. After completing the certificate program, you have the opportunity to directly transfer the credit in our associate degree program, so you can get to work sooner while completing your degree. Once you complete your associate degree, you may also consider completing our Bachelor of Science Degree in Healthcare Administration.

Get started online today or call us directly at 1-(888)-768-6861.