Health information technology regional extension centers should be designed with local needs in mind and focus on providing implementation and technical assistance to clinicians, according to a new survey released by the eHealth Initiative.
"We're entering a critical phase where decisions are being made about implementing the health IT provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act," said Jennifer Covich Bordenick, chief operating officer and interim CEO of the eHealth Initiative, which surveyed its 165 member organizations and 260 partner organizations.
"Regional extension centers will play an integral role in ensuring the success of the Obama Administration's goal of national health IT adoption by 2014 and it's important that they help providers rethink their workflow and assist in actually implementing these systems," she added.
According to the survey, nearly half of the respondents said regional extension centers should not be restricted to a specific metropolitan or state boundary and should be uniquely designed to meet the needs of the chosen coverage area.
Also, quality improvement organizations were the most popular choice of existing candidates to run the extension centers. Other suggestions include health information exchanges and organizational consortiums.
Respondents agreed that centers should focus their attention on:
- primary care practices (94 percent);
- public, not-for-profit and critical access hospitals (90 percent);
- entities located in rural/underserved areas (92 percent);
- and federally-qualified health centers (89 percent).
Respondents most strongly supported the centers providing the following services:
- dissemination of best practices and research (96 percent);
- technical assistance for implementation with clinicians (92 percent);
- workflow modification guidance for clinicians (91 percent);
- vendor-neutral advice on purchasing decisions (80 percent);
- and health information exchange support (80 percent).
