Make Sure Your MHA Program is Accredited
There are many things and take into consideration as you look to advance your health care administration career through enrolling in an MHA program. Is the school you are investigating have a class schedule that fits your particular lifestyle? Is there a campus that is nearby? Does the school offer an MHA program allowing you to specialize in your particular area of expertise? These are just a few of the many important questions that you’ll need to get answered in order to find the best MHA program available to you. An additional question that you have to have answered is if the program is accredited.
Accreditation is Awfully Important
There are a number of different reasons why you must seek out and find an accredited MHA program in order to secure this degree to advance your employment opportunities including:
• It not only provides you, but all your future employers, that your course of study in health care ministration has meant the highest caliber academic requirements that led you to developing the necessary skills and meets all industry standards.
• Enrolling in an accredited program will allow you the opportunity to transfer to another institution in the event you need to without having to lose any credits toward obtaining your degree.
• Graduating from an accredited MHA program will allow you the necessary entry into any additional advanced degree programs that you may wish to participate in at a later date.
• Participation in an accredited health care ministration program will allow you to qualify and apply for many different federal financial aid programs are available only to participants in approved programs.
Many Accrediting Authorities Exist
Just as there are many MHA programs available for participation both through traditional study as well as seeking to pursue a degree program online, there are many organizations created to set the standards by which these programs operate in making sure that they meet the standards set that will assure both students as well as potential employers that the education is a quality one. When conducting an online search for a qualified traditional or Internet-based MHA program, make sure you find one that is approved on the following agencies:
• The Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIM) which isn’t accrediting organization for individuals seeking degree granting programs in the health information management sector and can be found at http://www.cahim.org.
• Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME)
CAHME is the only organization recognized to grant accreditation to individual academic programs offering a professional master’s degree in health care management education in the United States and Canada. It can found at http://www.cahmeweb.org.
Health Care Administration Professional Organizations
Just as in any field of endeavor, there are many professional organizations that specialize providing information and other types of data to professional health care administrators. On to the zone is a she newly given a lot of opportunity to meet and obtain advice from your peers, establish a network of contacts that may lead to future employment, as well as keep up-to-date on any industry news and upgrades are changing standards. Although membership in these organizations is always voluntary, it is highly recommended that any professional healthcare administrator participate in one or more organizations that will have a positive impact upon the advance of their career. These organizations and health care ministration fields include:
• The Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA) is a not-for-profit association open to member programs offering both a bachelor’s or a master’s level education, faculty, providers as well as practitioners. It can be located at http://www.aupha.org.
• The American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) is an international society of more than 30,000 professional healthcare executives that lead the nation’s hospitals, healthcare systems and other healthcare organizations. It can be located at http://www.ache.org.
• The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) is the leading membership association for health information management professionals and can be located at http://www.ahima.org.
Get Recommendations
Individuals seeking to find the best MHA program to suit their personal needs – as well as one that is accredited – can seek recommendation or additional information to one of the many professional health care administration organizations where membership provides you a great deal of benefit.
Browse our list of schools with accredited MHA programs.