Recently graduated with a Biology B.S. degree with the plan on going to medical school, decided I don't want to deal directly with patients' bodily fluids. Also what are RHIA, RHIT, CHDA, CPHIMS, CAHIMS?

I recently came across the field, Healthcare Informatics, and I've never heard about it honestly until now. I've researched some master degree programs and there are a lot of them.

One program I'm looking at is in candidate status (large public university). Is this cause for concern?

It also says that completion of this degree does not qualify graduates to sit in for the RHIA or RHIT examinations. Why don't I qualify for these? Why do I need them? I went on ahima.org but I'm still confused. It says with work experience I can qualify to sit for the CHDA and CPHIMS after the completion of this program. I can also sit in for the CAHIMS certfication.

Am I right in understanding that RHIT and RHIA are entry level (bachelor degree certifications) while CHDA and CPHIMS are more professional (more education and experience?)

The program I'm looking at is an online program, is that okay? Is it better I look into an in-person program?

I'm also considering on studying pharmacy in the future, thought if I did this, worked for a few years, I could still go back to pharmacy school and these two degrees complement each other and might improve my earning potential, what do you guys think?