Onboarding plan
Health Information Technologist Onboarding Plan (30-60-90 Days)
A practical, printable plan to take a new health information technologist from first day to full productivity.
Health Information Technologist onboarding at a glance
Week one covers orientation, safety and shadowing. Days 1–30 build vocabulary and supervised practice on core procedures; days 31–60 move to independent work with competency sign-offs; days 61–90 focus on full productivity, cross-training and a credential plan.
Before day one
- Confirm start date, schedule, pay and supervisor in writing
- Verify required credentials: RHIT (AHIMA), CTR (NCRA) (as applicable)
- Prepare equipment and access: electronic health records; encoder software; registry software; spreadsheets
- Assign a buddy or preceptor
- Enroll the new hire in Health Information Technologist training so foundations are covered before or during week one
Week one: orient and protect
- Workplace tour, emergency procedures and incident reporting
- Protect patient privacy
- Use secure systems
- Report breaches promptly
- Follow retention rules
- Shadow an experienced health information technologist through a full shift
- Training modules 1–3: role foundations, a day on the job and essential vocabulary (15 terms)
Days 1–30: learn
Goal: perform core tasks safely under supervision.
- Supervised practice: process a records request
- Supervised practice: abstract a cancer case
- Supervised practice: audit record access
- Training modules 4–7: duties, step-by-step tasks, tools and safety
- 30-day check-in: confidence, questions and early wins
Days 31–60: contribute
Goal: handle a regular workload independently.
- Review health records for accuracy: independently
- Manage electronic health record systems: independently
- Analyze health data: independently
- Protect patient privacy: independently
- Competency sign-offs completed (see checklist below)
- Training final knowledge check and certificate of completion
- 60-day check-in
Days 61–90: own
Goal: full productivity and a growth plan.
- Meet productivity and quality targets for the role
- Begin cross-training on a secondary task
- Agree on a credential goal (for example, RHIT (AHIMA))
- Discuss the career path: HIM Technician → Registrar or Analyst → HIM Supervisor
- 90-day review
Competency checklist
| Skill or task | Trained | Observed | Signed off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Process a Records Request | |||
| Abstract a Cancer Case | |||
| Audit Record Access | |||
| Health information management | |||
| EHR systems | |||
| HIPAA and privacy | |||
| Medical terminology |
How to measure onboarding success
- Days until the new hire works without a preceptor
- Competency sign-offs completed on time
- Documentation or charting error rate
- 90-day retention
How Health Information Technologist training maps to this plan
- Introduction to the Health Information Technologist Role
- A Day on the Job
- Essential Health Information Technologist Vocabulary
- Core Duties and Responsibilities
- Common Tasks, Step by Step
- Tools, Equipment and Technology
- Safety, Compliance and Professional Standards
- Skills Employers Look For
- Launching Your Health Information Technologist Career
- Final Knowledge Check