This course is designed to teach the safe administration of medications to health care workers. Students are trained to give routine medications to patients in the Assisted Living environment.
This course content is approximately 30 Clock Hours of didactic learning.
Expected income ranges from $8.50 – $10.50 per hour depending on location and the type of work you do.
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Context: This course consists of 60 hours. There are no prerequisites for this class.
Textbook: LaFleur Brooks’ Health Unit Coordinating, 7th Edition Gillingham and Seibel, ISBN# 978-1455707201
References: Various instructor texts and Websites will be utilized by the instructor.
HUCs typically need to have a diploma, a certificate, or an Associate Degree. Diploma and certificate programs are generally around 15 credit-hours in length. They can be completed in less than a year. Associate Degree programs have a similar core curriculum with the addition of general education courses. Additionally, many programs typically combine classroom learning with hands-on experience in a medical setting.
Health Unit Coordinators can also voluntarily certify through the National Association of Health Unit Coordinators (NAHUC). Certification requirements include formal education, training, or experience, as well as a high-school diploma or GED.
The HUC Certification Training classes delivered by WeCareOnlineClasses were prepared by professional instructors and educators. As in any strong academic and educational system, the program is designed to help you acquire applicable knowledge and skills progressively, as fast as possible.
Your instructor and our support staff will review your progress and papers as you move along the course, with a view to (a) helping you get your Certification as quickly as possible, and (b) increasing your professional value in the eyes of HR departments seeking to hire Health Unit Coordinators.
Certified Health Unit Coordinators are mandated by their certification organization, NAHUC, to recertify every 3 years or to lose their original certification. The recertification process requires that you earn 36 NAHUC contact-hours of continuing education in various activities during the three year validity period of your certification.
As a Certified Health Unit Coordinator you will have opportunities to gain these contact hours in the framework of your employment.
A Certified Health Unit Coordinator is a HUC who has taken and passed the NAHUC exam.
A HUC is responsible for ensuring that operations run smoothly in a clinical setting such as a doctor’s office, a hospital, or a local clinic. The day-to-day duties of the coordinator’s position vary based on their employer. However, this individual’s responsibilities generally include checking patients in when they first arrive, scheduling upcoming appointments for patients, and inputting medical data into various databases.
Health unit coordinators also must break down and document charts for patient’s as they are discharged, ensuring that their documents and charts do not get mixed up with other patient’s charts.
They also handle tasks such as ordering supplies when they are running low, gathering new patient information, completing discharge information, and locating birth or death certificates. The HUC’s work hours generally depend on the environment in which they work.
Hospital unit clerks perform clerical duties such as making copies and faxing documents. They also greet visitors, answer incoming calls, and route callers to the right department or patient room. Hospital unit clerks answer questions from patients and visitors regarding test schedules and medical care.
The Health Unit Coordinator is responsible for performing duties related to patient admission, transfer, and discharge, communication with patients, guests and staff, electronic health records maintenance, and other duties of a clerical nature.
“Health unit clerks”, also known as “Health Unit Coordinators” and “floor clerks”, collaborate with physicians, nurses, and other healthcare workers within a secretarial or general office function at a hospital, nursing home, or other medical facility.
They answer phones, order supplies, and transcribe orders given by physicians.
Health unit clerks handle the majority of a patient’s paperwork, such as discharge, admission, and personal information forms.
Their job may include using a computer to document physician orders, preparing patient treatment charts, updating patient information, and scheduling appointments. They work under the supervision of physicians and nurses, taking direction and accommodating clerical needs.
In our Certification Training, you will acquire an understanding of basic nursing procedures, as well as some background knowledge in pharmacology. Patient confidentiality is emphasized and you will learn how to abide by local and federal requirements.
Employers prefer people with good communication skills (verbal and written) and capable of multi-tasking. Because the Health Unit Coordinator often takes care of multiple cases simultaneously, multi-tasking ability is an important job skill.
Likewise, your future employer will want to see your office management skills: can you organize and file (patients’ medical records, electronic health records) effectively ? Can you type (patient’s data into a computer) fast? Can you handle technical equipment (computers, fax machines, xerox machines, scanners, etc) without panicking?
Attention to details will be a constant requirement of the job. So during your probation period, your employer will look at your accuracy in preparing and keeping records (patients’ names and personal data, medical information from nursing records such as patient’s temperature, pulse rate, blood pressure…).
The administrative staff of the hospital or urgent care center will also look at your degree of competence in using hospital emergency codes, admission notes, patients’ length of stay and notices of discharge, record of absences and hours worked by the staff in your unit, etc.
The Health Unit Coordinator is constantly interacting with the medical team (physicians, nurses) and the administrative team of the hospital, and facilitating their work. Your employer wants to know that you have the ability to insert yourself in a team, and work as one with your fellow team members.
Can you prepare the supply requisitions nurses need in your service on time and without missing items? Can you relay messages to patients and to the medical staff with accuracy and speed? Can you route telephone and intercom calls correctly and speedily?
In your position as HUC, you will both have to lead, serve, and support. You will need to be aware of the work done by your nursing team in order to serve the patients under the care of your unit. You will be part of a big managerial effort sometimes called unit/floor management. Can you effectively participate and hold your role in it?
In a hospital or clinic, you probably will have to assume control of visitors, directing them to the correct room where the family member is staying. You will also likely route the mail, newspapers, maybe even flowers sent to patients in your unit.
Part of your duties may consist in transporting patients in wheelchairs from one unit to another. You will be in the service of others, all the time. The role of a Healthcare Unit Coordinator is by nature, a support function.
From the first HR interview, the clinic, emergency care center or hospital that plans on hiring you will want to know that you are aware of this type of duties. If your function includes such duties, they will look at your ability to perform them during your probation period. Leadership and service are two skills that will be considered during your staff performance reviews.
Healthcare is a stressful industry: the stakes are high because a person’s life and death is in the hands of your medical team. Your role as a Health Unit Coordinator will require solid nerves, and an ability to cope with situational stress and pressure. Patients will sometimes get angry. Nurses will press you to get paperwork done faster. Doctors will interrupt your work to inquire for more information about this or that case.
There may be tensions between people. You will have to handle interpersonal relationships with grace and ease, so that your medical unit operates continually with maximum fluidity.
Fortunately, your medical staff will appreciate your efforts and your participation in the process. Nurses and physicians are generous people, and they usually have a deep appreciation of their co-workers.
Because of the nature of healthcare industry, you can be sure that problems will arise, and things that should work all the time do not operate as planned.
You will see the emotions take the better of people under medical stress, and they will put their burdens on you. Are you good at problem solving? Can you deal efficiently with a sudden flurry of activity where paperwork is missing, incomplete data must be found, medical supplies must be routed quickly to those in need?
Problem-solving capacity is a major ability employers are looking for. Your competence as a Health Unit Coordinator will also be evaluated in the light of your ability to bring effective solutions and support in crisis situations.
Your future employer will also need your full participation in implementing corporate-wide programs. These programs can be process-related programs, cost-efficiency programs, retraining programs, etc.
They are typically designed to improve operations or remedy some situation that was previously overlooked in a unit. Your role as an HUC will consist in helping both the medical team and the administrative staff to implement these programs in the day-to-day operations of your team and unit.
Periodical performance reviews will certainly include an evaluation of the role you played and how well you helped in the process.
The Health Unit Coordinator Certification Training created and delivered by the teachers of WeCareOnlineClasses will gradually help you to master all the technical skills needed to be competent in all your administrative duties.
Once acquired, these skills can be put to use efficiently in your new position. When you have a good commands of the technical skills of your function, you can play your full role as a team member, and receive the appreciation of your colleagues for the help you provide in facilitating their work.
To become a Health Unit Coordinator, you will need to complete a HUC Certification Training, a program usually ranging from 3 months to 1 year in duration, with a certificate or diploma at the end.
• Adhere to customer/patient satisfaction service initiatives
• Respect cultural diversity
• Comply with regulatory agency guidelines/rules
• Protect confidentiality and patient rights
• Process admissions, discharges and transfers
• Manage physician orders
• Interpret hospital terminology and abbreviations
• Operate communication equipment and computers
• Identify and correct potential hazards
• Do even more as defined in the exam content outline!
You can find free and paid practice tests online. However, the NAHUC examination fee for non-members is $205. If you are a NAHUC member, you are eligible to receive a reduced examination fee of $150.
Yes, you can find free and paid practice exams online.
• Competence, effectiveness & attention to details
• Ability to work in a team
• Capacity for leadership, service and support
• Strong ability to manage interpersonal relationships
• Problem solving capacity
• Capacity to participate in managerial programs (e.g., cost-cutting, best practices)
A strong Health Unit Coordinator resume would list the following duties and tasks – welcoming patients, and attending phone calls; maintaining appointment calendar and medical charts; planning patient procedures and activities; ordering medical equipment and supplies; assisting patients in filling medical forms; resolving complaints, training new employees on hospital processes; and working with medical and non-medical employees.
Some other requirements expected by an employer might include – strong understanding of medical procedures and medical jargons; strong multitasking abilities, excellent communication skills, and knowledge of hospital policies, and operations. A high school diploma or relevant qualification is compulsory. Showing a HUC Certification would be very useful.
Health Unit Coordinator jobs are abundant online. You can search job boards at healthcare facilities near you. Or you can search for jobs on the internet with websites like Indeed.
Expected income ranges from $12.26 to $21.23 per hour depending on location and the type of work you do.
10th Percentile Salary $14
25th Percentile Salary $16
50th Percentile Salary $18
75th Percentile Salary $20
(Source: https://www.salary.com/research/salary/posting/health-unit-coordinator-hourly-wages)
According to a survey of 965 professionals carried out by PayScale.com, health unit coordinators earned between $30,000 and $67,000 a year in March 2021 with a median annual wage of $44,000.
Although the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics does not provide information specific to health unit coordinators, the BLS predicts that the number of medical secretaries (which share many of the same job duties) will likely grow about 10% between 2019 and 2029. According to the BLS, medical secretaries earned a median annual salary of $37,350 in 2020.
We believe that health unit coordinating will become an attractive job for the new wave of healthcare workers. A recent Healthcare Advisory Board analysis of the number of in-patient beds needed to care for our aging population indicates that we will face a shortage of beds in the future. The analysis indicates that the need for beds is growing every year. These additional beds will increase the number of Health Unit Coordinators needed in the workforce.
Dress codes vary by facility. Most will require a specific color of scrubs.
Upon successful completion of your Health Unit Coordinator Certification Training, you will take the national certification exam administered by the National Association of Health Unit Clerks/Coordinators (NAHUC). WHen you pass the exam, you become a Certified HUC, and you can find employment as such in a variety of settings.
We Care Online offers a Certificate of Completion for the HUC course. To be certified, you need to take the NAHUC exam. Our HUC Certification Training Course is also approved by the Board of Regents for Private Post-Secondary Colleges in Kansas.
The National Association of Health Unit Coordinators is the governing board for HUC’s.
Our Health Unit Coordinator Training course teaches you what you can expect to be asked for on the NAHUC exam.
Generally, there are no state specific requirements for the job of Health Unit Coordinator. However, many healthcare facilities require specific courses and certification. Be sure to check with your employer to make sure you take the right course. There is only one national certifying body for Health Unit Coordinators: NAHUC.
Since the HUC does not provide patient care, the HUC course would not count toward nursing credentials.
Your HUC Certification is granted for three years. To maintain your certification status, you must recertify during the third year following your initial certification, and every three years thereafter. Like many certifying organizations, NAHUC is aware that your profession is always evolving, and requires that you afford yourself the benefits of continuing education in order to keep your certification privilege.
Continuing education is the only way you can keep serving your patients, your colleagues, your team and your employer to the best of your abilities. WeCareOnlineClasses.com wants to encourage you to keep your credentials valid by using all continuing education opportunities when they present themselves.
HUC Recertification requires an on-going education component of a minimum of 36 hours every three years, that shows you have stayed abreast of the changes in the industry and are actively participating in professional growth and development.
According to NAHUC’s CHUC candidate handbook, you can obtain your recertification in 2 ways:
1. By providing proof to the NAHUC Certification Board of having acquired thirty-six (36) NAHUC contact hours for various educational activities during the three (3) year certification period; or
2. By passing the certification examination before your certification expiration date.
Source: http://documents.goamp.com/Publications/candidateHandbooks/nahuc-handbook.pdf
