Independent practices, particularly primary care practices that lack substantial capital for investment, do not have resources that can be squandered on failed projects.  Medical organizations with fewer than 500 providers are hard pressed to take on EMR implementation projects on their own.  HVA specializes in helping these communities.  Our ideal client is an organization with 50-500 providers.

HVA can assist this organization’s administrators in creating a new entity or transforming their current organization into one that can be successful with ERM implementation, and become clinically integrated in a way that is economically beneficial to the members and sustainable.  HVA has developed a template process by which organizations can be built quickly.  We can help hold down initial investment, decrease on-going costs, provide staff and expertise otherwise unavailable to such communities, deliver a breakeven investment and positive return on investment, and those communities maintain the organization and their HIT infrastructure.

Various sources of funding are now available for EMR projects.  Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, has HIT infrastructure money available, and has set aside additional incen-tives through Medicare reimbursements for those practices demonstrating meaningful use of their EMR.  All our clients, without exception, have and will meet these meaningful use requirements.

Access to pay-for-performance programs whether sponsored by government or private payers is avail-able for our clients.  Participation in programs like the Medical Home and PQRI projects is also available to our clients.  In addition, hospitals are now allowed to invest in provider HIT projects due to the relaxation in the Stark laws, and most are eager to make this part of their physician engagement strategy.

There is investment of human and financial capital, and providers themselves will have to pay some of the expense if their true aim is to be clinically integrated.   However, it is easier now than it ever has been to reach payback or breakeven, and to start realizing significant positive return on investment in a short time period.

Reducing the initial and ongoing costs while still providing the support your providers need will shorten the time to payback, shorten the time to positive ROI, increase cumulative return on investment, and help maintain a successful and sustainable project.

HVA strongly advises working with a team that knows what they are doing.  There is no need to rein-vent the wheel.  HVA has been down this path.  We have developed the organizations, implemented EMR systems, guided our clients to clinical integration, and supported and maintained successful pro-jects.  We know where the hurdles and potholes are and can help you avoid them.  We know where the opportunities are and can help you exploit them.  These projects involve a large investment of re-sources.  They shouldn’t be run by folks unfamiliar with them.  It is just too costly.

Absolutely!  Demonstrate-able returns in real dollars, not just saved dollars.  Data from one practice of five providers revealed a $69,400 net return to the partners in the first full year of using the implemented EMR.  This is fairly typical for HVA clients.

First your practice and organization must be as efficient as possible in the paper world.  Second, you must think about opportunities to become even more efficient in decreasing expense and increasing revenue in the electronic world (clinical quality improvement, economic efficiency improvement, office workflow improvement, health information technology systems).  Third, you must implement programs that improve the value of your healthcare services so you can take them to market.  Fourth, you must use your collaboration and infrastructure to participate in as many evidence-based pay-for-performance programs as possible.  Fifth, you should implement as soon as possible to take full advantage of the HITECH program in the ARRA. Sixth, your organization should become clinically integrated and participate appropriately in joint venture activity.  HVA can help you with all of this.