Earlier this year our very own Leanne Parsons passed her CHIA exam. Leanne is Project Manager within the Workforce Team at AIDH. We caught up with her to chat about her CHIA experience.
Leanne Parsons
Project Manager, AIDH
1. How did you get interested in IT/health informatics/digital health?
My interest in digital Health and health Informatics developed in a former role at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. My Team were involved in the implementation of new digital health solutions to streamline patient flow. I was given the opportunity to project manage the implementation of the patient queuing system. I enjoyed the solution focused aspect of the role and digital health in general. I also worked with a wide range of stakeholders including clinicians, IT vendors, patients and consumers so was exposed to the various perspectives within the implementation of digital health projects.
2. What have been your favourite aspects of working in this field?
When I was working within a hospital setting knowing that I was contributing to improving the patient experience gave me a huge amount of satisfaction. The same could be said of providing solutions to capture data and inform decision making to ultimately make clinicians jobs easier.
Now that I am in the Workforce Team at AIDH my focus is slightly different and my work centres around upskilling the digital health capability of the workforce. The direct link to the patient experience may not be there in the same way but it is still very much about improving the quality of care as an end product.
3. What motivated you to get involved with the CHIA Program?
I felt that it would be recognition for the work I have undertaken across a number of different industries and projects combined into one certification. Looking at it in that sense, it is an acknowledgement of my skills and experience.
I used to work as a Project Manager for Telstra Health, while I was there some colleagues achieved their CHIA. As such, I have been aware of the program for a while and was always interested when my colleagues spoke about their experience. So, when I started at AIDH, the opportunity presented itself and I grabbed it with both hands!
Broadly speaking I have to say that I am always seeking opportunities to further my learning, particularly within digital health.
4. What was your experience like when completing CHIA?
It was challenging but rewarding to finally pass the exam. As the certification is across such a wide range of competencies, I had to put the effort in and studied hard.
My approach to study was to work through both the Practioner’s Guide and Study Guide, taking notes in each area, then doing a high-level review of those notes. Looking back, I feel that I should have identified competencies that I was not as confident in earlier on and focused study on those areas – but that’s the benefit of hindsight!
5. What benefits have you experienced after completing your CHIA credential?
Completing CHIA gives you access to an amazing network of health informatics professionals. When completing projects within the AIDH Workforce Team I really try and make use of this and often approach and consult stakeholders from the network to provide feedback on engagement pieces.
In terms of content, the Competency Framework has given me a broad understanding of health informatics. It touches on so many areas of health and I feel I have been able to link the concepts to my everyday work. I can see myself making use of this learning well into the future.
6. Any advice to others interested in completing the certification?
My number one piece of advice when embarking on CHIA is not to underestimate the width and breadth of knowledge required to pass the exam. It is a lot more challenging than I initially thought.
Make use of the resources, I highly recommend the Practitioners Guide. Pace yourself and develop a plan of attack from the start. On the day of the exam, I cannot stress enough that you should find yourself a nice quiet spot free from any distractions!
Also, I would really recommend thinking about whether CHIA is right for you. Review the Competency Framework to grasp an understanding of the areas covered in the exam and the amount of study you will need to undertake.
For me, I knew I had been in health long enough to be able to grasp most of the areas required and could study those I was not as familiar with.