Mid-Career Transition into Health IT

A Strategic Guide

Minimize the challenge of entering the health IT field mid-career by taking a strategic approach. The industry is rapidly expanding, and there is a growing demand for professionals with healthcare experience and technical expertise. This step-by-step guide is designed to help you navigate the transition successfully.

1. Identify health IT-relevant skills and talents.

Start by assessing your current skill set.

List your existing skills, then categorize them into at least three categories:

    • Career accomplishments and highlights
    • Non-technical skills (e.g., communication, leadership, change management)
    • Technical skills (e.g., data analysis, EHR systems)

2. Research healthcare IT job options that align with your transferable skills, focusing on roles you find interesting, to help define your career path.

Use available resources to explore the health IT landscape. Leverage tools such as your alumni or college career center and the HIMSS Health IT Workforce Resources, including:

3. Explore potential health IT roles to understand position expectations.

Consider roles that align with your background and interests:

    • Healthcare Informatics Specialist
    • EHR Implementation Specialist
    • Application Analyst
    • Clinical Systems Analyst
    • Healthcare Data Analyst
    • Provider Liaison

4. Analyze job descriptions of target roles in organizations you want to work for. Select several job postings for your ideal positions.

Compare your current skills to those required:

    • Use a Traffic Light Gap Analysis to evaluate your readiness. Use highlights (yes, use three highlighters) to show your current skills and areas for improvement.
    • Green: You already have this skill.
    • Yellow: You have basic knowledge—consider upskilling through courses (e.g., HIMSS, LinkedIn Learning).
    • Red: You need to acquire this skill—seek hands-on experience or formal training.

5. Now that you have identified the positions you qualify for, start organizing your health IT skills.

Reevaluate your in-demand strengths across three main categories to leverage your experience in key health IT areas:

    • Career achievements relevant to health IT
    • Non-technical expertise (e.g., problem-solving, teamwork)
    • Technical competencies list programs commonly listed in health IT job descriptions (e.g., software tools, data systems)

What accomplishments from your previous career will fulfill the HIT position requirements?

What non-technical and technical skills do you have or need to acquire?

6. Showcase Your Health IT Skills on Your Resume and LinkedIn.

Add your health IT achievements, experience, expertise, and technical skills to your resume and LinkedIn profile. Incorporate health IT language and terminology from the job descriptions of the companies or organizations you have identified as potential employers.

Use the titles below for each section:

  • Achievement/Career Expertise – relevant to this position.
    • Emphasize accomplishments that align with Health IT roles.
    • Present both technical and non-technical skills separately
  • Non-Technical Skills–
    • Project Manager: risk and scope management, cross-functional stakeholder management, change management and workshop facilitation.
    • Relationship Builder: known for clear, concise, and respectful verbal and nonverbal communicator, team builder, and networker.
    • Risk Manager and Problem Solver: constructively anticipate and address disagreements or problems to find equitable solutions.
  • Technical Skills:
      • EHR Proficiency: EPIC, Cerner PowerChart, EHR data quality, integrity, and analytics
      • Project Management: smartsheet, Jira, or other project management software
      • Workflow Optimization & Data Analytics

Again, tailor your content to match the language in the job description. Organizations have different labels for different functions and services.

7. Health IT Resume Best Practices:

    • Use clean, minimal formatting with black text and white space.
    • Tailor your resume to each application by mirroring the language used in the job postings and including relevant information as specified in the job description.
    • Arrange your skills bullets according to the order of job skills in the description, which are often listed by importance.
    • Replace your resume’s generic “Summary” section with your target job title.
    • Tailor your resume to the organization’s mission and values.
    • Highlight your most relevant and recent experience.
    • Ask yourself: What am I known for that matches this job?
    • Ageism concerns? Omit GPA and minimize date references.
    • Focus on your latest and most relevant experience. Avoid presenting your 20-year employment history; instead, emphasize your core skills.
    • Use AI only to review your resume after it has been drafted. Resumes that are completely AI-generated are often rejected as automated responses.

8. Why LinkedIn? It is crucial to secure a job in health IT.

LinkedIn is an opportunity to:

    • Showcase your health IT skills to attract recruiters.
    • Engage and connect with the Health IT community.
    • Build your professional reputation and network.

9. LinkedIn Profile Basics.

Tailor your profile to reflect health IT goals, including:

    • Banner image
    • Headline
    • About section with health IT key skill words
    • If you use AI to optimize your profile, be sure to review and edit it carefully.

10. Leverage Your Prior Experience.

Use the same categories as your resume:

    • Accomplishments
    • Non-technical skills
    • Technical skills
    • Customize your profile to reflect your target roles and employers.

11. Start Networking on LinkedIn:

    • Ensure your profile is complete.
    • Connect with health IT professionals and organizations.
    • Follow and engage with:
    • EHR vendors
    • Health systems
    • Employers like Blue Cross and others
    • Comments and activity attract attention

12. Stay Active and Visible on LinkedIn.

Weekly:

    • Share or comment on health IT articles, webinars (e.g., from HIMSS), and vendor and potential employers’ posts.
    • Connect with health IT recruiters and peers.

13. Key Resources:

Professional Development Resources

1. Certifications and Credentials:

2. Online Educational Resources:

3. Mentorship and Peer Support:

    • Join HIMSS chapters and mentorship programs