Thursday, November 21, 2024
11/21/2024
PROJECT ABSTRACT The Arkansas Foundation for Medical Care (AFMC) was selected by Governor Beebe???s Health Information Exchange (HIE) Task Force to lead the Arkansas Health Information Technology Regional Extension Center (ARHITREC). ARHITREC is designed to recruit and assist eligible providers of primary healthcare to install and use electronic health record (EHR) systems in their private practices. ARHITREC proposes to assist 1,280 priority primary care providers (PCPs) to become meaningful users of certified EHR technology by December 2011. This represents 43% of all PCPs in Arkansas. ARHITREC has broad support to achieve this objective. Arkansas has made significant investment for broadband infrastructure and HIE development, and offers collaboration with the University of Arkansas (UA) system through the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences (UAMS) and the state???s two and four year colleges. This support is the foundation for provider recruitment and training in health information technology (HIT) and development of a workforce to sustain HIT initiatives. The State and Federal governments have committed funds to support broadband and HIE grant programs. UAMS and other hospital networks have initiated and continue to expand their HIE systems. UAMS and the two and four year colleges have already started to implement curricula to train and develop the required workforce. The Arkansas Medical Society, Office of Rural and Primary Care, Community Health Centers of Arkansas, Arkansas Hospital Association, State Medicaid Director, and dozens of other agencies and organizations have committed to support the program. While support for ARHITREC is strong, there are barriers to rapidly achieving HIT initiatives. Arkansas is primarily a rural state; an estimated 60% of all PCPs are located in rural, uninsured, underinsured, or underserved locations. More than 90% are in practices with fewer than 10 physicians. As the lead organization for ARHITREC and the Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for Arkansas, AFMC is uniquely positioned to reach these priority practitioners. We currently have staff serving the 2,970 PCPs in all 75 Arkansas counties. Our plan increases HIT-trained staffing to meet the needs of the program where appropriate broadband connections exist to make meaningful use certification possible. This four-year grant has two budget periods of two years. In period one, ARHITREC recruits 1,280 providers as early adopters using program services for EHR assistance. We recruit an additional 1,000 providers in period two. Federal incentive funding to providers declines in period two with a larger financial burden falling on late adopters. Services offered by ARHITREC include: education for using EHR; analysis and redesign of workflows to accommodate EHR; vendor assessment and group purchasing; implementation and post implementation assistance for EHR installation; and certification of meaningful use. ARHITREC provides the cornerstone of the state???s efforts for HIE. Broad and successful adoption of EHR in Arkansas and the nation improves the overall efficiency of healthcare, improves the ability to manage chronic diseases, provides a means to drive down cost, and ultimately, allows provider and patient access within minutes to health records from any point in the United States that has access to a computer terminal. Project Title: Arkansas HIT Regional Extension Center Service Area: The entire state of Arkansas (ZIP-3 Codes = 716 ??? 729) Applicant Name Arkansas Foundation for Medical Care Address 401 West Capitol, Suite 450, Little Rock, AR 72201 Contact Name: Greg Peterson, CFO, CPA, MBA, CIA, CISA Contact Phone Numbers Voice 501-212-8604, Fax 501-224-2101 E-Mail Address: BizD@afmc.org Web Site Address: www.afmc.org and HITArkansas.com
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).
