Bookmark & ShareFor Immediate Release: 04/12/2010
Contact: Heather Masters 360-923-2937
(OLYMPIA) -- A ten-state community college consortium headed by Bellevue College (BC) has been awarded $3,364,798 in Recovery Act funds to support the training and development of health professionals in the use of health information technology (HIT).
“Washington State has long been a leader in the field of technology, and we have developed health care programs that serve as a model for national reform, “ said Gov. Chris Gregoire. “It’s only natural that we are also leading the way to create new technology jobs to make our health care system more affordable and efficient. ”
Chosen by their community college peers to lead the consortium, BC will manage the deployment of nationally-developed health IT curricula, with the goal of supplying the workforce necessary to support adoption of electronic medical records.
The BC-led consortium is pledged to train 2,400 health care professionals, within two years.
The consortium grant is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The award is part of the $2 billion effort to achieve widespread meaningful use of HIT and provide for the use of an electronic health record for each person in the United States by 2014.
The Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) is the lead agency for statewide health information infrastructure planning and implementation, providing oversight and coordination of all Washington State HIT initiatives related to the Recovery Act. In the case of the consortium, HCA brought together consortium members, facilitated the creation of the group, and supported the drafting of the grant request.
HCA Administrator Steve Hill said the programs receiving stimulus funding will work together to improve health services to Washington residents. “The various grants introduce HIT to those who haven’t previously had access, provide the infrastructure to electronically exchange information, and help train people to use the data.”
The Bellevue award is just the latest in a series of federal recovery grants specific to the area of HIT in the state of Washington. In February, $12.8 million was awarded to a Health Information Technology Regional Extension Center led by Qualis Health. The Center will help health care providers in Washington and Idaho advance the use of electronic medical records and other health information technology tools.
Also in February, Washington State was awarded $11.3 million in stimulus funds to develop and advance the sharing of secure health records through a statewide health information exchange.
# # #
Reference: bellevuecollege.edu/news/releases/archives/2010/HHSgrant4-7-10.asp
