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By Holly Desrosier

With a booming healthcare industry and quality healthcare professionals constantly in high demand, now is the perfect time to start a career in the medical field. �ƹ���Ƶ (�ƹ���Ƶ CC) has a variety of affordable health career pathways that will teach students the skills needed to thrive as a healthcare professional. Applications are now being accepted for various health programs through April 30.

One program is Health Information Technology (HIT). The growing use of electronic health records and the necessity to keep them secure continues to expand, making HIT professionals increasingly in demand. �ƹ���Ƶ CC’s HIT program teaches students clinical, leadership and management skills through information technology. It is a hybrid program, which combines seated and online classes, and leads to national certification. Upon successful completion of the program, students should be able to apply their knowledge to multiple facets of healthcare.

“HIT is the computer/technical side of healthcare,” explained Dr. Alec Newton, �ƹ���Ƶ CC dean of Health Programs. “Basically all healthcare is dependent on computers, from tracking patient information, billing and finances to program support and data analysis. A HIT specialist can work any of these aspects in a variety of settings.”

HIT program graduates often work at a doctor’s office, hospital, government agency or even at home. They can go on to earn a Bachelor’s, Master’s or PhD in Health Information Management if they want to build on their degree.

The college’s Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) program teaches students the foundational knowledge needed to provide treatment for people with conditions such as muscular, skeletal, cardiopulmonary and nervous system disorders. Students engage in hands-on learning in multiple instructional labs that include therapeutic exercises, ambulation training, activities of daily living and administration of physical agents such as heat and cold. PTAs assist with treatments that address the patients’ sources of pain, dysfunction or limitation and ultimately improve their quality of life.

“PTAs work directly with a physical therapist to help patients who have suffered an injury, had surgery or were born with a physical deficit,” said Newton. “The physical therapist makes the diagnosis and has the PTA work with the patient doing the prescribed exercises, stretches and therapies that help them with their quality of life.”

PTAs at �ƹ���Ƶ CC spend two years gaining the knowledge and practicing the skills they will need in the field and have three clinical practicums before they are able to sit for the national certification.

The Medical Assisting (MA) program prepares students to perform administrative, clinical and laboratory procedures. Coursework includes instruction in scheduling appointments, how to calculate medication dosages for administration, coding and processing insurance accounts, billing, collections, medical transcriptions and computer operations. Students will also learn how to assist with physical exams and minor surgeries, administer shots, take blood, perform electrocardiograms and a number of other skills that will prepare them to assist with day-to-day patient care.

“Medical Assistants work alongside doctors and other healthcare professionals in a clinic or doctor’s office and are able get their national certification after graduating with their diploma in only three semesters,” said Newton. “They are then able to finish a few more classes to earn their associate degree online and obtain a medical scribe certificate while they are working in the field.”

Classes will begin this fall, and interested students may apply at the New Bern and Havelock campuses or online. All three programs have limited enrollment for the fall 2020 semester. Students accepted into the programs will be notified in June. To apply online or find out more, visit .

For questions or more information on �ƹ���Ƶ CC’s health programs, contact Aileen Will, Health Programs admissions specialist at 252-639-2025 or willa@cravencc.edu.

This article was originally published in the  on March 11, 2020.