The face of healthcare, as we know it, is in the midst of dramatic change and a key foundational pole is healthcare information technology (HIT), many thanks to the entire HITECH section of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act. Healthcare organizations, public entities, payors, and vendors are collectively making investments that far exceed even the $30+ billion identified by the federal government. All this is creating a marketplace of excitement, urgency, and even trepidation about the journey toward healthcare of the future. For those of us committed to HIT, it is pure opportunity both as professionals and as patients.
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Marianne N. Braunstein
GE Healthcare IT
Product Manager, Clinical Adoption
The push to computerize health care records has created an urgent demand for a health information technology (HIT) workforce. In 2009, President Obama announced that all Americans should have an electronic health record (EHR) by 2014, a goal that defines the tipping point for this HIT workforce. The vision involves enhanced communication, confidentiality standards, data on populations and diseases to further medical advancements and improvement of health care delivery.
Behind the creation and proper use of EHRs is a skilled HIT workforce that installs, operates, and optimizes EHR systems. National estimates project that up to 200,000 HIT workers are needed to implement EHRs for all residents by 2014. The federal government estimates a shortage of 51,000 HIT workers to achieve this goal and has responded by giving $118 million to date in grants to educational institutions for the rapid, short-term training of HIT professionals.
A broad spectrum of careers and roles has emerged in the HIT field for both dedicated techies and those who enjoy working more directly with others. The federal Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has identified twelve job roles that fall within three general categories of HIT workers:
- Mobile adoption support workers who install and support the implementation of EHR systems in health care settings.
- Staff in health care settings who provide ongoing support for HIT efforts.
- Informaticians, engineers and scientists engaged in research and development to advance the capabilities of HIT.
Without a dramatic increase in the number of trained and competent health information technology professionals, the promise of electronic health records will not be fully achieved.
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David Boxberger
CEO, Peer Technologies
Many HIT educational programs offer flexible schedules, online training and short-term certificates for full-time students as well as dislocated workers and full-time workers looking to advance or change careers. To explore if the HIT field seems right for you, and for information on occupations, educational programs, and scholarships/financial aid, see the following occupational profiles:
See also:
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