If it is said that healthcare IT
is the most promising area in terms of career growth there are valid reasons
for this. In recent years healthcare IT has shown tremendous investments and growth.
Also it is among the few fields which are free from the impact of the
recession. Earlier the healthcare professionals were skeptical about the career
growth and prospects in Healthcare
IT but the now the scenario has changed.
The greatest boom is because of
the adoption of EMR. Talking globally , most of the hospitals in US demonstrate
significant use of the electronic health records. This includes implementation
,use of e prescription and ability of the IT systems to send EMR data electronically to public health agencies. Under the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 the Health Information Technology for
Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act set aside $19 billion for hospitals
and physicians who demonstrate meaningful use of electronic health records. The Indian healthcare providers plan to spend
Rs. 5700 Crore ($ 897.64 million) on IT in 2013, a 7% rise over 2012 revenues
of Rs. 5300 Crore ($ 834.65 Million) as per a report by Gartner.
The second significant thrust behind healthcare IT growth
is the tenth revision of the International Statistical Classification of
Diseases and Related Health Problems, or ICD-10. ICD -10 affects coding for
everyone covered by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
ICD-10 codes are to be used on all HIPAA transactions. Preparing for ICD-10 is
a lot of work for most health organizations: the potential of updated software
to install, staff
training, changes in business operations, internal and external testing, reprinting of manuals to make this
transition happen, the healthcare industry needs skilled healthcare IT people.
For healthcare managers a career in
healthcare IT can be financially lucrative. But one should be ready to adapt to
the continuous change particularly in the area of technology. The entry level
position offered by various IT companies is that of a healthcare business
analyst. Business analyst should possess a strong
knowledge of Healthcare domain (claims, contracts, health insurance). Analysts
gather data and conduct researches. After the research is complete, groups of
healthcare business analysts may reconvene, review findings and investigate
potential solutions. The growth trajectory is followed by the positions of
Associate consultants , consultant and Principle consultant. Also there are
prospects of working onsite.
Health care industry is gearing up really
fast to proceed to the next level of technology with the improvised use of IT.
Choosing a career in healthcare IT provides opportunity to grow individually
along with the growing industry.
Ms . Neha
Bhagatkar
Assistant
Professor
MBA –HHM (
SIHS)
References
http://www.healthcareitnews.com
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