Since the recession hit Southwest Florida nearly three years ago, one of the only areas of growth has been in the healthcare industry.  

 

Now  Edison State College and the Region 24 Workforce Development Board are working together to ensure Hendry and Glades counties are prepared for future changes in healthcare.

 

“As we develop new courses and bring new curriculum choices into our Hendry/Glades Center, we are careful to select areas that can translate into real career opportunities,” said Dr. Steve Atkins, Vice President of Academic and Student Services at Edison State College.  “The health information management field is changing dramatically.  The way current and future employees are trained will need to coincide with those changes.” 

 

Edison State College administrators point to President Barack Obama’s push to convert all medical records to an electronic format in the next few years. 

 

“The switch to electronic records and billing means current and future employees will need to learn an all new system,” said Bill Roshon, Dean of Professional and Technical Studies at Edison State College.  “Edison State recognizes area healthcare providers will need well-qualified graduates to make the electronic conversion run smoothly.”

 

To further this cause Edison State College and the Region 24 Workforce Development Board applied for and received a $500,000 grant from Employ Florida.  The purpose of the grant is to focus on healthcare services in and for Hendry and Glades Counties in the expanding sectors of Ambulatory Health Care Service, Nursing and Residential Care Facilities, Information Technology Management and Internet Technology (IT) Support Services.

 

 

The grant will allow Edison State College to provide the training and education focused on these areas.  The Workforce Board will concentrate on identifying and monitoring specific employer and community needs.  The group is also charged with providing support services necessary to meet the communities’ needs.

The Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation finds there is a local and statewide need for well trained employees in the Medical Records field. The group finds by the year 2014 there will be a significant need for additional employees in HIM.  Jobs in Heath Information Management rank 5^th of the 100 fastest growing occupations in Florida.

 

Edison State College began offering a new Associate’s of Science Degree program in Health Information Management this fall semester.  Classes will be offered in a traditional classroom setting and online. For more information on Health Information Management, please call 239-489-9414.

 

Posted/Updated on Nov 2, 2009