American Staffing Association - January/February 2012

So how does a staffing firm begin reaping the business benefits of this quickly escalating need? Here’s a look at what some companies already have in the works.

Why the HITECH Act Matters

Part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act was enacted in February 2009 to promote the adoption and meaningful use of health information technology. The legislation pours $20 billion into improving American health care delivery and patient care by supporting the “meaningful use” of health information technology—and ultimately allowing every American to benefit from an electronic health record and comprehensive medical care across providers.

The HITECH Act specifically authorizes the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to provide reimbursement incentives for the successful implementation of electronic health record systems. Therefore, it is in the best interest of physicians and hospitals to partner with staffing firms to get these systems in place and train employees to support them. What’s more, starting in 2015, health care providers will be assessed financial penalties by Medicare if they are utilizing electronic health record systems that are not in compliance with “meaningful use” per by the legislation.

Time for ICD- 10

It’s been nearly 20 years since the World Health Organization recommended that health care providers move to the 10th version of the International Classification of Diseases. The ICD- 10 is the international standard for classifying diseases and other medical conditions, and is the principle tool for tracking morbidity on an international level.

The U.S. is the only industrialized nation that has yet to implement ICD- 10— but time is up for the nation’s health care providers. Effective Oct. 1, 2013 all medical claims that do not utilize ICD- 10 codes will be rejected, giving health care providers yet another incentive for partnering with staffing firms that can provide the health care IT services, billing and coding expertise, and training that will get them up to date and keep them in business.

ASA will continue to keep its members apprised of health care IT news, announcements, and resources—particularly through its health care and technical, IT, and scientific membership sections. For more about ASA membership sections, contact Diana Mertz at 703-253-1171 or dmertz@ameri- canstaffing.net.

Starting With IT Strength

Even before the government raised the stakes on electronic health record systems, health care providers turned to experienced IT professionals— and staffing firms in the IT sector—for help with implementing new electronic health record systems. But federal mandates and incentives mean health care providers must step up their game—and that means they need even more qualified help.

Currently, many staffing companies serving the IT sector are helping meet the demand for health care IT professionals. However, with demand expected to spike in the coming months, just as many firms also are looking for qualified IT candidates they can train in health information management.

Conversely, the burgeoning health care IT field also creates opportunities for individuals with a clinical health care background who can effectively branch out into the IT sector. Given either strategy, it remains clear that impending federal deadlines will help contribute to a shortage of qualified health care IT professionals in the months to come.

For example, developing the needed work force to implement both electronic health record systems and ICD- 10 upgrade is a major undertaking for health care providers. The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has funded a work force development program to train health care IT professionals. The program includes $118 million to support the training and development of more than 10,000 new health care IT professionals. Additionally, more than 50,000 health care IT jobs have been created since the enactment of the HITECH Act.

Keith Fulmer, vice president of health care solutions for Tampa, FL–based Kforce Inc., says a primary challenge from a staffing firm’s perspective is identifying the skill sets that can be crossed over into health care IT.

“Employees that have experience implementing large client relationship management systems are equally qualified to implement these health care IT systems in hospitals,” Fulmer says, “if they receive clinical support.”