What is Health IT and why is it a national priority?
A
groundbreaking transformation is occurring in the delivery of health care in the
United States as the federal government and private health care organizations
work to curb skyrocketing health care costs and ensure affordable, accessible
health coverage for all.
An important component of this medical revolution is Health Information Technology (Health IT), the use of information and communication technology in health care to record, store, protect, retrieve and transfer medical information within healthcare settings. The field of Health IT bridges several professional disciplines including medicine and allied health professions, law, informatics, computer science, business, project management and research.
President Barack Obama has made the investment in “e-health” a priority for the U.S. Towards that end, the president is investing $56 billion dollars in the next five years to move the U.S. health care system to “paperless medicine” by encouraging physicians to adopt standards-based electronic health record (EHRs). It is estimated that between 50,000 and 200,000 new jobs will be created in Health IT in the near future.
What is UT Austin doing?
The College of Natural Sciences and the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin, in collaboration with the Seton Family of Hospitals, the Texas e-Health Alliance, the TMF Health Quality Institute, the Texas Medical Association, and members of the Health IT industry have worked together to create four new certificate programs designed to “fast track” university graduates into this rapidly evolving field. Funding for these programs was made possible on April 2, 2010, when the university received an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) grant awarded by the Office of the National Coordinator, Health Information Technology to the Professional University Resources and Education for Health Information Technology(PURE-HIT) Consortium, a collaboration of Texas State University, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Texas School of Biomedical Informatics. The consortium received 5.4 million dollars, the largest award in the nation among the nine programs funded for university-based education in Health IT.
UT Austin, which received 2.77 million dollars of this funding, quickly moved to implement the first of the four certificate programs –an intensive 9-week Summer Certificate Program leading to certification as a Health Information Manager and Exchange Specialist. On June 3rd, 55 highly motivated students began the program; on July 30th, 54 were awarded certificates. The great majority of program graduates are seeking jobs to enter the Health IT workforce; others will apply for jobs when they complete their college education in the upcoming academic year.
Two additional certificate programs are being developed and will be offered in the next three years. The 9 week summer program was repeated in 2011 and will be held again in summer 2012. We are now accepting applications for the summer 2012 program!The 9 week certificate program is also being offered through professional education during the fall and spring semesters (click here for more information).
Professional Education Programs
Revolutionizing health care means change. Change means opportunity. Whether you own a medical practice, need employees for your electronic health records company or just want to change careers, our Health IT Professional Education Program will make you a participant in the health care revolution – not merely a bystander. Click here to learn more.
