What is CPHIMS?
What the name stands for, who awards it, what it proves, how to earn it step by step, how long it lasts, and how it differs from the certifications close to it.
What does CPHIMS stand for?
Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems. Once you pass, you may write the letters CPHIMS after your name, the way others write PMP or CISSP.
Who awards the CPHIMS certification?
HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society), a global not-for-profit organisation based in the United States that works in health information technology. HIMSS writes the exam and sets its requirements and fees; the exam itself is delivered by Pearson VUE.
This site is independent of HIMSS and does not award the certification: it is a place to prepare for the exam.
What does the certification prove?
Three things together:
- Hands-on experience: only people with years of work in information and management systems, most of it in a healthcare setting, may sit the exam. Details on the eligibility page.
- Broad knowledge across four domains: Healthcare and Technology Environments (25%), Clinical Informatics (20%), Healthcare Information and Systems Management (30%) and Management and Leadership (25%).
- Keeping up: the certification only lasts if it is renewed every three years.
The exam does not ask about one vendor's system or a programming language. It asks for the right decision in a situation: which step comes first in a new system project, who owns the decision, what the risk to the patient is, and what the law says.
How do you earn CPHIMS, step by step?
- Check the requirements: a bachelor's degree and 5 years of experience, a graduate degree and 3, or 10 years with no degree required, most of it in a healthcare setting (details).
- Apply and pay on the HIMSS website. No documents are attached, but an application may be picked for audit (fees).
- Receive the Authorization to Test 3 to 5 business days after approval; it opens a 90-day window to sit the exam.
- Book a date at a Pearson VUE centre or online from home or work (OnVUE), and study. How long? See how long to study.
- Sit the exam: 100 multiple-choice questions in English, in two hours (exam day).
- See the result on screen straight away: pass or fail, on a 200 to 800 scale, with 600 to pass (passing score).
- The certificate arrives about 8 weeks later.
How long does CPHIMS last?
Three years. You renew it with 45 hours of continuing education over those three years, 2 of them on ethics, or by passing the exam again. Details and fees on the renewal page.
What CPHIMS is not
- Not a licence: no law requires it to practise; its value on the job market is set by employers.
- Not a degree: it does not replace a bachelor's or master's in health informatics.
- Not tied to one system: it has nothing to do with a particular vendor's electronic health record.
- Not for beginners: HIMSS has another certification for people whose experience is not complete yet (next section).
How does CPHIMS differ from related certifications?
| Name | Awarded by, and for whom |
|---|---|
| CPHIMS | HIMSS, for experienced people in healthcare information systems and their management |
| CAHIMS | HIMSS, for beginners: no years of experience required. CPHIMS or CAHIMS? |
| CHDA | AHIMA, for healthcare data analysis. CPHIMS or CHDA? |
Is CPHIMS worth the fees and the time? See is CPHIMS worth it, and the full preparation plan in the exam guide.
Source
- HIMSS, CPHIMS Candidate Handbook (May 2024 edition): the certification and its purpose, eligibility, applying, the exam, the result and renewal.
Try exam-style questions
A 20-question trial exam with an explanation for every option and a score per domain, drawn from 40 free questions. No payment method needed.
Start the trial examQuestions about the exam: CPHIMS guide · Exam cost · Eligibility · Passing score · Renewal · Exam day · How long to study · Is it worth it?
The four domains: Healthcare and Technology Environments · Clinical Informatics · Healthcare Information and Systems Management · Management and Leadership
Facts checked against the HIMSS candidate handbook and the HIMSS site on 9 October 2026; HIMSS may change them, so confirm on its site before you apply or pay. An independent site, not affiliated with or endorsed by HIMSS. CPHIMS® is a registered trademark of HIMSS.