Career Pathways

Whether you are interested in developing a career plan or looking for ways to advance your skills, healthcare career paths provide an avenue to enrich your professional development and fulfill the requirements to become an expert in your field. Bring more meaning to the learning process and create purpose-driven goals for your team, organization, and career with individual self-paced learning resources—all included when you join HFMA.

Through this step-by-step approach to education, you can tailor your learning across healthcare career paths with specialized training in revenue cycle, business strategy & analytics, payment reimbursement, and a range of other healthcare finance specialties. Interested in learning more? Explore HFMA Career Pathways below.

Revenue Cycle

Be better prepared to decrease receivables, reduce denials and work more efficiently within your patient-centered revenue cycle.

Proficiency goals:

• Manage efficient revenue cycle operations
• Provide a transparent patient experience
• Improve financial performance

Courses:

• Patient Access Essentials – Recommended for revenue cycle front-line staff who are new to their position
• Patient Financial Communications: Advance of Service
• Patient Financial Communications: Time of Service
• Patient Financial Communications: Emergency Department
• Certified Revenue Cycle Representative – Recommended for revenue cycle staff with at least 1 year experience
• Strategies to Prevent Claims Denials

Business Strategy & Analytics

Acquire the capability to highlight useful information, suggest conclusions and support decision making to enable powerful results-oriented actions.

Proficiency goals:

• Expand strategic leadership capabilities to leverage influence
• Track and manage compliance for frequently changing laws
• Address growing patient expectations
• Deploy, manage, and invest resources
• Analyze performance of business lines and recommended changes 

Courses:

• Business of Health Care^® – Recommended for those new to healthcare finance
• Certified Healthcare Financial Professional – Recommended for healthcare professionals
• Certified Specialist Business Intelligence – Recommended for healthcare managers with at least 2 years experience

The Bottom Line

Explore and hone your budgeting, reporting, risk analysis management. 

Proficiency goals:

• Assess cost management to meet demands
• Deeply understand payment models
• Be an expert at revenue management
• Analyze and generate accurate and timely financials 

Courses:

• Business of Health Care^® – Recommended for those new to healthcare finance
• Certified Specialist Accounting & Finance – Recommended for accounting professionals in healthcare financial management

Payment Reimbursement

Unpack the finances of managed care, from big picture trends to contracting and negotiating, reimbursement methodologies, and provider and payer processes.

Proficiency goals:

• Deeply grasp value-based and other payment models
• Manage contracting process by leveraging technology
• Understand risk evaluation

Courses:

• Business of Health Care^® – Recommended for those new to healthcare finance
• Certified Specialist in Payment and Reimbursement – Recommended for finance and clinical leaders

Financial Compliance

Stay informed on key legislative and regulatory requirements.

Proficiency goals:

• Ensure operations conform with pertinent laws and regulations
• Be informed on current compliance requirements

Courses:

• Business of Health Care^® – Recommended for those new to healthcare finance

Strategic Financing & Access to Capital

Be ready to make decisions regarding joint ventures, debt obligations, bond issues, capital investment decisions, equity financing and more.

Proficiency goals:

• Finding alternative sources of capital to increase cash position 
• Avoid getting into a cash-poor position
• Build financial strength and facilitate growth at a sustainable rate

Courses:

• Certified Specialist in Accounting and Finance (CSAF) – Recommended for those managing the financial assets of the organization.

Physician Practice Management

Enhance your understanding of the essentials of contemporary physician practice management. 

Proficiency goals:

• Understand context and framework of how practice fits within the entire healthcare continuum
• Manage bad debt and charity care, as well as third-party and self-pay receivables
• Comply with Stark Laws that pertain to physician practices
• Evaluate contracts for maximum benefit and develop accurate financial reports for managing the practice

Courses:

• Certified Specialist Physician Practice Management – Recommended for physician office manager or medical practice operations positions
• Business of Health Care^® – Recommended for those new to healthcare finance

“With HFMA and CRCR I was able to enhance my learning experience and use some of that knowledge during my internship to help write some new policies and work on how we communicate with our patients.”

Morgan Coker, CRCR
Revenue Cycle Manager, Advanced Dermatology

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