With the data pulled, the numbers crunched and the results analyzed, ADVANCE presents its 2007 Salary Survey. Nearly 1,400 respondents took the time to log in to the online salary calculator and share their bottom lines, and thanks to them, you can see how your salary measures up. The survey encompasses work and home location, job specialty, education and benefits, in addition to salary, and this is the second year that the online calculator has been used to gather the survey results.

Respondents represented a wide variety of HIM professionals from all areas of the industry. More than 31 different job titles were represented, and, as in past years, the most responses came from coders, transcriptionists, managers and directors. Nearly half described their employment setting as a hospital or acute-care facility, followed distantly by 12 percent of respondents who work from a home-based office and another 12 percent who work in physician offices or group practices (Table 1). Overall, the outlook appears positive-most HIM positions showed an increase in salary from our 2006 results, and in many cases the jump was significant. Keep in mind as you peruse that some questions allowed for multiple answers, so the results may not always add up to 100 percent.

Coders Cost More

It's no secret that a shortage of qualified coders exists. Open coding positions are tough to fill, and employers seem willing to shell out more cash for quality coding professionals. Nationwide, the salary for coders rose from $30,163 last year up to $34,381 in 2007 (Table 4). "It's just a hugely candidate-short market and continues to look like it's heading in that direction," said Amy Simpson, national champion for the health information group, Kforce, a Tampa, FL-based staffing firm.

Simpson doesn't necessarily believe that coder salaries are increasing because employers are trying to lure them in to fill open positions. HIM professionals have a lot of options on the table nowadays, Simpson said, and hospitals are simply trying to compete. "To stay competitive as an employer of choice, they've had to increase their salaries," Simpson added.

Breaking down the results, coders in urban areas earned more than their rural and suburban colleagues. The city dwellers raked in an average of $38,214, while those in the 'burbs brought home $35,267 and the rural coders collected an average of $29,574, according to the salary survey results.

Directors on the Rise

Like their coding counterparts, HIM directors and managers saw salaries increase from 2006 to 2007, as well. In fact, the average salary for directors rose by nearly $10,000, shooting up from $58,662 to $68,500. A new title added this year, director of HIM-health system, weighed in at $58,107, while managers raked in slightly higher salaries, which went from $48,820 to $51,945.

The number of respondents holding a registered health information technician (RHIT) or a registered health information administrator (RHIA) credential stayed about the same as last year, but like coders, those with RHITs and RHIAs saw pay skyrocket (Table 6). RHITs brought home $45,670, compared to last year's $41,572, and RHIAs reported raking in $59,093, up from $54,386. "Credentialing is going to be key. Credentials definitely correlate to a higher salary," Simpson said. "Credentialing is going to be a key component for people to grow in their careers."

Also of note, urbanite directors reportedly earned more than $26,000 more than their rural colleagues, with suburban-area directors falling in the middle, as indicated by Table 3.