CHISP Certification
The Certified Health Informatics Systems Professional (CHISP™) credential indicates that a technical professional has undergone rigorous, supervised testing and found capable of effectively supporting physician adoption of various Health IT tools and resources by the American Society of Health Informatics Systems Professionals.
Like handpicking the top candidates out of a crowd, CHISP professionals “stand out” with employers–even when they are new to the industry.
CHISP tells the hiring public that a professional understands both the healthcare industry and Health IT:
CHISP™ Frequent Questions
Am I qualified to take the test?
How do I prepare for the test?
Where and when is the test given?
What resources can I use during testing?
Do I need a “stand alone” webcam to take this test?
In order to be eligible to sit for the certification exam and to earn the CHISP™ credential, an individual must have at least three years working IT experience (hardware related, software related, data related, or clinical IT training related). The three years experience requirement will be waived if the ASHIM™ member has earned a Microsoft or Cisco certification, a degree in computer science, or a diploma from an accredited IT post secondary program.
The CHISP™ core competency outline, developed by ASHIM, defines a set of skills-based competencies needed by IT professionals in the HIT profession, regardless of the career path they choose. It is rooted in seven core competencies to reflect the nature of the field and the way one area of knowledge blends into another.
The Certified Health Informatics Systems Professional (CHISP™) credential indicates that an IT professional is able to support physician adoption of Health IT. Areas of testing include the health care environment, Health IT, IT, and soft skills including communication skills.
A CHISP™ certified Professional has successfully demonstrated knowledge and skill in the following:
CLINICAL
• Basic anatomy and common disease processes
• Operational structuring of healthcare services and providers
• Medical terminology
• Principals of medical research and public health
COMMUNICATIONS
• Strong written, verbal, face to face, and presentation skills
COMPLIANCE/LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS
• Industry accreditation requirements and regulatory compliance
• Medical legal considerations including ARRA, HIPAA, STARK, etc
• Payment compliance including SSA, OIG Compliance for Group Practice, prompt payment laws, etc
HEALTH IT (HIT)
• Clinical data repositories
• Clinical healthcare applications
• Computerized decision support systems
• CPOE
• Digital imaging systems
• Documentation management tools
• Electronic health records products/services
• Enterprise master patient indices
• HIE and RHIO
• Patient portals
• Personal health records products/services
• Principals of clinical remote monitoring
• Principals of telehealth
• Concepts in interoperability
• Concepts in security
• General knowledge of vendor specific software
INFORMATION ANALYSIS
• Principals related to of Costs of Care
• Accepted standards in clinical terms and coding
• Statistical concepts used in research
• Extracting data
MEDICAL ADMINISTRATIVE OPERATIONS
• The patient-care flow process
• Basic physician billing principals: ICD-9 and ICD-10 coding
• Basic physician billing principals: CPT Coding
• Knowledge of contract and billing operations related to 3rd party payment (commercial and government)
TECHNOLOGY
• Principals of RFID, wireless, mobile platforms
• New/emerging technologies
• Operating Systems
• Database-driven applications
• Cloud and SAAS computing
• Open source projects
The CHISP™ practice exam gives test takers the ability to gauge their readiness for the actual exam.
The Practice Exam Offers:
• Instantaneous Grading – incorrect answers are displayed with rationale
• Retakes – take the exam as many times as you like
• Exam Content – emulates content and difficulty level of the actual exam
• Readiness Gauge – an indication of your readiness for the real exam
Practice exams are $29.95 and will be available for ASHIM member purchase in early 2010.
CHISP™ is delievered online between 12 Noon to 12 Midnight EST M-F, and from 6 p.m. to 11 EST p.m. on weekends. It must be scheduled, rescheduled, or canceled 48 hours in advance.
Scheduling options are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
CHISP™ is fully secured using today’s technologies and does not require test takers to go to a testing facility. Instead, the exam may be taken from any computer with a standalone webcam and high-speed internet access.
The CHISP™ Exam is Secured as Follows:
Biometrics: All test takers are required to complete a biometric enrollment process that includes capturing their photo and keystroke analytics. These are used to authenticate the test taker and are later displayed as part of all credential verification requests.
Real Time Human Proctoring and Security Shield: The CHISP™ exam requires a stand-alone webcam. The webcam must be positioned so that the test taker’s proctor can see the test taker’s hands, face, keyboard and test area. During an active test session, the Security Shield secures the test taker computer and tracks test taker behavior. The program constantly monitors information from the Security Shield for aberrant behavior. In addition, each testing session is actively monitored by trained proctors to scan for visual anomalies such as:
UNALLOWED TESTING BEHAVIORS
• Talking or suspect movement of the lips is not allowed during testing
• No books or other resources are allowed during testing
• Taking a telephone call during testing is not allowed
• Leaving the room during the 3 hour exam is unallowed (with the exception of one “trip to the restroom”)
• Having more than one person (the test taker) present during testing is not allowed
• Tapping fingers, rearranging, removing or playinng with clothing is not allowed during testing
The test taker will remain connected to the proctor during the entire testing process. If an aberrant behavior is detected either by the human proctor or by one of the many automated security scans, an alert is generated and the test will be paused for investigation or terminated.
ONLINE TESTING REQUIREMENTS
A BASIC WEBCAM WITH THE FOLLOWING FEATURES IS REQUIRED (built-in webcams are not compatible with the exam)
• 640 x 480 resolution
• Manual focus ring or Auto Focus
• Built-in microphone preferred
• USB connection preferred
A web camera must provide a FULL view of your keyboard, hands and face during the entire exam. It should be placed at a 45 degree angle so that the proctor can clearly view the tester’s hands, face, keyboard and work area.
Your testing area must meet the following requirements during your test session:
• Quiet and free from any activity other than testing.
• Ample lighting is necessary.
TESTING WORKSTATION SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Windows
• Operating System – Windows 2000 Professional (with Service Pack 3+) / Windows XP (with Service Pack 2+) / Vista (32 bit operating systems ONLY)
• Hard Drive – Minimum 500MB available space
• Video – Color video display set to 1024×768 resolution
• Internet Access – Internet access using Internet Explorer via a dedicated ISDN, DSL, T1 or cable connection (dial-up and satellite connections are not acceptable)
• Installed Hardware – Microsoft compatible mouse, Approved Webcam/Microphone
• Installed Applications – Internet Explorer 6.0+ (Mozilla Firefox is not supported), Flash Player (installed through IE), .NET Framework 2.0+, Windows Installer 3.0+
• Firewall – ports 80 and 443 open
• Administrator rights to install
Macintosh
• Operating System – Mac OS X 10.5.3 or later with an Intel processor type
• Hard Drive – 5GB available space recommended
• Video – Color video display set to 1024×768 resolution
• Internet Access – Internet access using Safari via a dedicated ISDN, DSL, T1 or cable connection (dial-up and satellite connections are not acceptable)
• Installed Hardware – Macintosh compatible mouse, Approved Webcam/Microphone
• Installed Applications – Safari version 3.0+ (3.1.2 or later recommended) (Mozilla Firefox not supported), Flash Player
• Firewall – ports 80 and 443 open
• Administrator rights to install
CHISP™ will be available to qualified ASHIM members after Januray 1, 2010. The typical total cost to sit for the exam one time, is $260.00, which includes a one year ASHIM membership.
Click Here to go to the Online Store or call 877-263-1261
Fees Schedule:
• Annual Membership (required in order to take the CHISP™ exam): $85.00
• First Attempt – CHISP™ exam: $175.00
• Subsequent Attempt/s – CHISP™ exam: $49.95 (secured test proctor processing fee)
After becoming an ASHIM member and completing an application that demonstrates that you are “qualified” and eligible to sit for the certification exam and to earn the CHISP™ credential, you will be provided with information to schedule your exam. Exams are fully proctored online and must be scheduled in advance. If the test taker passes the exam, the CHISP™ credential will remain valid for one year. To renew the credential, the test taker must maintain annual ASHIM membership, which includes demonstrating a continued current knowledge in the healthcare industry.