Faisal Hussain, MD, earned his master’s degree from the Health Informatics and Information Management (HIIM) program in the College of Health Professions at UT Health Sciences in December 2021.
When he comes to Memphis for alumni festivities during the weekend of April 17, it will be his first time setting foot on campus. Despite never having visited in person, he says he feels strongly connected to his alma mater and would recommend the HIIM program “in a heartbeat.”
Dr. Hussain, who lives in Williamson County in Middle Tennessee, is receiving an Outstanding Alumnus Award from the College of Health Professions during the UT Health Sciences Weekend April 17–18, the university’s first all-college reunion event. He will also attend a brunch on Sunday, April 19, at The Peabody Hotel to celebrate the HIIM program’s 50th anniversary.
“I am looking forward to it,” he says. “I’ve never seen the campus before.”
The HIIM program has been fully online since 2009. This makes the program attractive to students like Dr. Hussain who work full time while pursuing an additional advanced degree.
“I came across UT Health Science Center because I live in Middle Tennessee,” he says. At the time, he was working at Community Health Systems based in Franklin, Tennessee, and began searching for answers to the recurring operational and data‑related questions he encountered in practice. “It was never about what additional letters would look good after my name – it was about where my curiosity was leading me. UT Health Sciences gave me the framework to answer questions I kept running into.”
Dr. Hussain currently works for MedStar Health, the largest health system in the Maryland, DC, and Virginia area, as the System Clinical Documentation Integrity Physician Advisor. He credits the HIIM program with helping him grow into administrative, informatics‑driven, and data‑focused leadership roles.
“I gained so much from the program,” he says. “It really greatly enhanced my level of understanding, especially in HIM, informatics, and data.”
Thanks for the Memories
Lela McFerrin was in the first graduating class after the program moved to UT Health Sciences from Baptist Hospital, where it was established in 1954. In July 1973, the newly formed College of Community and Allied Health Professions, now the College of Health Professions, assumed administrative responsibilities for the program at the request of Baptist Memorial Hospital.
McFerrin, who lives in Chattanooga, worked at various hospitals throughout the southeast as a Health Information Management director and taught courses for several programs including at UT Health Sciences. She retired from Parkridge Medical Center in Chattanooga in 2020.
“Our classroom was on the ninth floor of the old Baptist Hospital,” she says. “As you can imagine, there was very little automation in the departments back in those days. The Master Patient Index was on cards in a huge Lektriever. Birth certificates were typed on Selectric typewriters. Physician reports were typed on magnetic cards and then printed out by the transcriptionists at the end of the day. Physicians wrote their progress notes, many in scribble format. Coders used books and paper abstracts when capturing required patient data.”
“We were excited to be graduates of UTHSC,” she says.
Leading the Way
Throughout the years, the program has been a leader and a trailblazer in the field, including with its name. In October 1992, it became the Department of Health Information Management to reflect the change of its professional association’s name the previous year. The departmental name was changed to the Department of Health Informatics and Information Management in 2006.
In 2007, the department began offering the Master of Health Informatics and Information Management (MHIIM) degree. The MHIIM is designed for working health care professionals to advance their knowledge of health informatics and apply health information technology skills in their clinical settings. The UT Health Sciences program was the fourth in the country with a Health Informatics and Information Management Education accredited master’s program.
In 2009, it became an entirely online format and began to admit part-time students. The following year, the program transitioned the BS program to an entry-level master’s degree track in the graduate program.
UT Health Sciences became the first program in the United States to offer the entry-level master’s degree. Individuals successfully passing the national registration examination receive the professional designation of RHIA, Registered Health Information Administrator. The program is fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Health Informatics and Information Management Education through 2030.
Program Director Rebecca Reynolds, EdD, MHA, says health informatics professionals are in high demand. “But due to our behind-the-scenes work, many people may not know about this exciting career option,” she says. “Our program is online so working professionals can learn the skills to use data and technology to improve health care.”
Dr. Reynolds says she is thrilled to celebrate the program’s legacy with the more than 50 alumni members set to attend the anniversary event. “It is amazing to reflect on the program and realize I have been a part of this program for over 30 years. I know that UT Health Sciences will continue to innovate and lead health informatics and information management education in the future. Our graduates are proof of that.”