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Have you heard about the reinvented CHFP certification program?
The new focus enhances your skills & prepares you for the changing healthcare industry.
Starting in June 2015, the healthcare industry’s premier certification in healthcare finance will adopt an integrated approach that extends beyond its traditional focus on demonstrating competence in finance and accounting. The changes in Healthcare Financial Management Association’s (HFMA) signature certification program, the Certified Healthcare Financial Professional (CHFP), are designed to prepare leaders for a new era in health care.
“HFMA’s goal is to build a broad understanding of healthcare finance together with leadership skills, business acumen, practical knowledge, and a collaborative spirit – skills essential for succeeding in today’s environment,” said HFMA President and CEO Joseph J. Fifer, FHFMA, CPA. “Healthcare leaders in all sectors will require a deep understanding of the new financial realities of health care that reflect an integrated delivery system with the complexities of the provider, payer, and physician perspectives intertwined.”
The reconfigured CHFP consists of two online modules:
- The Business of Healthcare: A big-picture overview of healthcare finance, risk and risk mitigation, new payment models, financial accounting and cost analysis, strategic financial issues, and managing financial resources.
- Operational Excellence: The application of business acumen includes exercises that use a case study approach to understanding the business of health care.
“Today’s healthcare industry demands professionals with a broad set of skills,” said Diane Simmons, HFMA Vice President for Education. “The redesigned certification program shifts the emphasis to a learning and validation model that encompasses the emerging integrated delivery system. Our goal is to assist healthcare leaders to embrace and adapt to change by providing them with foundational skills and knowledge necessary for leading change.”
The CHFP, which was first awarded in 1969, has long been seen as a must-have credential for healthcare finance professionals. The current program is highly technical and narrowly focused on accounting and finance skills. In June 2014, the HFMA Board of Examiners recommended that the program be reorganized. “We saw the need to focus on issues that reflect the contemporary healthcare environment,” said Cindy Price, FHFMA, Chief Executive Officer, Parallon Business Performance Group – Houston, and Chair of the National Board of Examiners. “We wanted the preparation to emphasize ongoing learning, which is critical for providing leadership amid today’s policy and economic shifts, and also to align CHFP with HFMA’s strategic vision, where providers, physicians, and payers must work together to ensure financial sustainability.” HFMA’s Board of Examiners affirmed the recommendation.
Please note: members who purchased study guides from January 2014 onwards and took either the practicum webinar in Jan-Feb 2014 or the session at UMass Medical in September 2014 may be eligible to take the old exam but must confirm that option with HFMA Career Services (1-800-252-4362 or ) before April 30, 2015. Members who are in the retest phase will be able to retake an exam in the old format as well but are urged to schedule that exam as quickly as possible.
More information is available at hfma.org/chfp. CHFP pre-registration, available May 1, 2015, will allow interested individuals to email Career Services and receive full details when the CHFP registration is live in June.
