Practicum Classes
HIT 275 HIT Practicum
Frequently Asked Questions
1. When should I start the process of lining up a site for my practicum?
Once registered for HIT 275, the instructor will email you to ask for 3-5 potential sites in your area. The email will be
sent in December for the spring semester and in July for the fall semester.
2. How do I identify potential sites?
Determine acute care hospital sites that are close to you and begin contacting the HIM Director or Manager to introduce yourself
and inquire as to the possibility of them hosting your practicum. The email sent by the instructor will include details regarding
the practicum and documents that should be shared with the sites so that they can make a decision. If the site is able to
host or considering hosting a practicum, let them know that the instructor will be contacting them. The student will send
contact information regarding the site to the instructor. The contact information should include hospital name, address,
HIM Director/Manager name, phone number and email address if possible.
HINT: If you had a positive experience with your HIT 101 department tour, you may want to consider that facility as a possible
site.
3. Who do I contact at the site?
The student should first contact the HIM Director or Manager.
4. Is it okay to contact the practicum instructor in the semester prior to taking the class to get everything lined up?
Yes, that is fine. However, the instructor will be contacting all registered students in the prior semester or summer before
the start of the semester.
5. How much time outside of the work at the facilities should be dedicated to the practicum class?
You are required to complete 160 hours for your practicum class. If placed at the beginning of the semester, that is 10 hours
per week. The schedule is determined by the student and the site. Most sites require students to be available during the
week days during the day shift.
6. Can I do the practicum at a facility where I currently work?
Students can complete the practicum at a facility where they work as long as they are not performing their daily function
and are not being paid for the hours. For example, a coder could not do the coding portion of the HIT Degree Practicum at
their facility.
7. Can work hours count toward practicum hours?
No.
8. How many hours must be completed at the facility?
160 hours unless the student is having difficulty finding a site and/or the site is unable to provide the total hours. In
those cases, the student can participate in the partial virtual practicum set up in the HIT 275 class. The partial virtual
practicum could provide between 40-80 hours depending on what the student has accomplished in other classes, i.e., HIT 101,
EHR scavenger hunt and HIT 280, virtual coding practicum.
9. Can hours be done through any virtual practicum experience?
If the student is having difficulty finding a site and/or the site is unable to provide the total hours, the student can participate
in the partial virtual practicum set up in the HIT 275 class. The partial virtual practicum could provide between 40-80 hours
depending on what the student has accomplished in other classes, i.e., HIT 101, EHR scavenger hunt and HIT 280, virtual coding
practicum.
HIT 280 Coding Practicum
Frequently Asked Questions
1. When to start the process?
Start the process in the current term for which you have registered for HIT 280 at the beginning of the semester. It is vital
that you login to course are review all posted/provided course materials.
2. How to identify sites:
Students are asked to provide 5 possible sites in their specific geographical area to course instructor.
3. Who to make contact with:
Course instructor is contacted via course email.
4. It is okay to contact the practicum instructor in the semester prior to taking the class to get everything lined up?
No, please wait until the beginning of the term for which you have registered for HIT 280.
5. How much time outside of the work at the facilities should be dedicated to the practicum class?
Students who go onsite to a healthcare facility for HIT 280 also have to complete online assignments and submit a research
paper. Time to complete this work will vary per student. Most likely student will need 10 hours to complete other HIT 280
work that is in additional to coding of 40 required records.
6. Can students do the practicum at a facility where they work currently, for example, as a coder (for HIT 280)?
Students can do practicum at facility where they work but it cannot be during their normal work hours. A coder can code charts
at facility they work at but hours for coding of 40 required charts/records cannot be during normal work hours and cannot
be charts that coder/student would normally code.
7. Can work hours count toward practicum hours?
No, per AHIMA and CAHIIM work hours cannot count toward practicum required work.
8. How many hours must be completed at the facility?
For HIT 280, hours will vary per student. Students are required to code 40 charts/records; 20 inpatient records and 20 outpatient
records.
9. Can hours be done through any virtual practicum experience?
For HIT 280 students have option to do coding of 40 required records/charts either in virtual format (Moodle course) or by
going onsite to an acute care healthcare facility
CIM 275 CIM Practicum
Frequently Asked Questions
1. When should I start the process of organizing my practicum?
CIM 275 is offered every semester – fall, spring and summer. You should contact the practicum instructor via email the semester
prior to enrolling in CIM 275. The instructor will provide you with more specific information about the expectations and nature
of the practicum in the email response. This email will include the details of the practicum as well as a handbook for site
supervisors which will give these individuals an outline of exactly what must be included in the practicum activities. You
will want to provide any potential site supervisor with a copy of the handbook for site supervisors. This will aid the site
in making the decision.
Go to the Commission on Cancer website Hospital Locator tool at http://datalinks.facs.org/cpm/CPMApprovedHospitals_Search.htm Enter your city, state, zip code and radius (5 to 50 miles). Click the “Start Search” button. The search results will appear, along with the distance from the zip code you provided. If you click on the “detail” button next to the name of one of the facilities listed, the address, phone number and website of that facility will come up. Go to the facility’s website and find the contact information for the cancer registry. Call (or email) the registry office to introduce yourself and inquire as to the possibility of them hosting your practicum. If the site is willing to host your practicum, let the potential site supervisor know that your instructor will be contacting them. At that point, you will send the instructor the contact information regarding the site including the hospital name and address, as well as the phone number and email address of the CTR who will be supervising the clinical practicum.
HINT: If you had a positive experience with your CIM 100 site visit, you may want to consider that facility as a possible site.
3. Who do I contact first?
The student should first contact the CTR who will be supervising the clinical practicum.
4. Is it okay to contact the practicum instructor in the semester prior to taking the class to get everything lined up?
Yes, that is the best way to ensure everything is ready for your practicum prior to the semester in which you plan to complete
your practicum begins.
5. How much time outside of the work at the facilities should be dedicated to the practicum class?
We work through five cases on the CIM 275 discussion forum. The time you spend on these five cases may be counted toward the
160 hours and the cases can be counted as 5 of the 30 required abstracts.
6. Can students do the practicum at a facility where they currently work?
Students may complete the practicum at a facility where they work as long as they are not performing their daily function
and are not being paid for the hours.
7. Can work hours count toward practicum hours?
No.
8. How many hours must be completed at the facility?
You are required to complete 160 hours for your practicum class. If placed at the beginning of the semester, that is 10 hours
per week. The schedule is determined by the student and the site. Most sites require students to be available week days
during the day shift, although there are limited opportunities to do a portion of the practicum remotely and/or on weekends.
9. Can hours be done through any virtual practicum experience?
There currently is no virtual practicum component for CIM 275. Once the NCRA completes the Cyber Registry, students may be
allowed to complete 40-80 hours of their clinical practice through the Cyber Registry.
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