Friday, April 19, 2024
4/19/2024
Virginia HIT Regional Extension Center (VHITREC) Service Area: Virginia VHQC 9830 Mayland Dr., Suite J Richmond, VA 23233 804.289.5320 jbrockman@vhqc.org www.vhqc.org VHITREC is a statewide effort led by VHQC, Virginia???s Medicare Quality Improvement Organization, and the Center for Innovative Technology (CIT), a state-affiliated non-profit that accelerates technology adoption. Subcontracts with Community Care Network of Virginia and the Medical Society of Virginia extend VHITREC???s capability to serve safety net providers and recruit priority providers. More than 20 healthcare stakeholder organizations have indicated their support for VHITREC, which Virginia???s Medicaid Director has designated as an HIT adoption entity. Our application is accompanied by more than 600 commitments from priority providers. Rapid HIT adoption and meaningful use, however, are challenges for even the strongest EHR teams and the most enthusiastic providers. VHITREC???s innovative IT solution overcomes priority providers??? biggest barrier to EHR adoption???cost???by offering secure Internet access to a choice of EHR systems for a monthly fee, eliminating the expense of hardware, software, data storage and maintenance. The VHITREC solution generates ongoing revenue that supports sustainability while substantially reducing the EHR installation period, providing more time to help at least 2,285 priority primary care providers achieve meaningful use in the first two grant years. This goal is 20% of Virginia???s primary care providers and nearly 50% of the Commonwealth???s priority primary care providers. Building on VHQC???s expertise as the national leader of the Medicare QIO Program???s EHR initiatives with primary care physicians and CCNV???s expertise as one of the first FQHC networks in the nation to implement EHRs, VHITREC will deliver intensive, on-site technical assistance to priority providers. Working with VHITREC, providers will assess their readiness for implementation, select an EHR system that matches practice needs, analyze workflows, and apply methodologies including Lean and Six Sigma to streamline patient care processes for efficient and meaningful EHR use. CIT will provide critical support and on-site assistance for interoperability, health information exchange, and privacy and security. EHR-specific communities of practice will further accelerate adoption and meaningful use by creating a forum for peer-to-peer learning. In addition, all Virginia providers will be able to access VHITREC educational resources, such as statewide conferences that foster sharing of best practices, and a website with information, self-training materials and tools. By sharing income from EHR access fees, requesting provider commitment and ???graduation??? fees, and encouraging providers to assign or share a proportion of federal HIT incentives, VHITREC will become a sustainable organization that can generate 90% of its income after 24 months. In grant years 3 and 4, VHITREC will use lessons learned to not only assist the remainder of Virginia???s priority primary care providers in becoming meaningful users of EHRs, but also to recruit a greater number of non-priority providers. VHITREC will remain sustainable while advancing health quality by developing additional services tied to meaningful use and by developing new services that support successful participation in pay-for-performance programs.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
