The California Health Information Association (CHIA) is a non-profit professional association for health information management (HIM) professionals. CHIA was founded in 1949 and is the California-based component state affiliate of the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA).
The purpose of CHIA to ensure health information services for the welfare of the public in the State of California; provide leadership for the profession of health information management; promote and advance the profession of health information management and represent the interests of the members of the profession; contribute to the development of professionalism and performance by providing members with information, resources and leadership; contribute to the delivery of patient care and the protection of patients’ rights with respect to health information confidentiality.
CHIA is composed of the parent state association and seven component local associations serving regions within California.
Members of CHIA are HIM professionals, and those who have an interest in HIM issues, who are also members of the American Health Information Association and who have selected California as their component state association (CSA).
The HIM profession encompasses about 125 job titles under the health information management professional umbrella and is practiced in at least 40 work settings including hospitals, insurance companies, physician offices, clinics, government agencies, and research centers.
HIM career credentials are offered through the AHIMA and include: