Demand Exceeds Supply for Some Health IT Jobs

A recent brief from eHealth Initiative asserts more health IT job opportunities are available than qualified people to fill them, especially on the health data exchange front. The report comes on the heels of a Feb. 1 update from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that reveals jobs in the healthcare sector will outpace growth in other sectors through 2020.

“Given the prevailing air of economic uncertainty in America and the unprecedented level of support for health information technology from the federal government, growth in health information systems may represent an untapped market for both job creation and market savings,” the brief states.

One way to address the shortage of workers with skills needed by health information exchanges (HIEs), the eHealth Initiative recommends that ONC work more closely with the industry to assess the exact IT skills that are sought by HIEs in order to strengthen the ONC’s workforce program...