Playbook: Healthcare IT

It’s no secret that healthcare IT services are gaining momentum and popularity with each passing day. Thanks to the economic stimulus package, healthcare providers have access to billions of dollars in funding to upgrade their IT systems and go electronic with all medical records.

For physicians’ practices and rural hospitals (the SMBs of the healthcare world), this task is particularly difficult. While larger hospitals will have their own IT staffs, smaller practices and hospitals don’t have that in their budgets. But the promise of stimulus package funds and the threat of penalty for not complying with new healthcare IT laws will spur many practices and rural hospitals into action, in desperate need of the expertise of an IT service provider.

For IT service providers and managed service providers (MSPs), this is a ripe opportunity. If a dedicated IT staff is not in the budget for a rural hospital or physicians’ practice, an MSP is the logical and affordable choice. But diving into healthcare IT is no easy feat – it requires training and a deep understanding of what healthcare IT entails.

In this ChannelPro Playbook, you’ll learn about the beginning stages of setting up a healthcare IT practice. Learn about the market opportunities, and get advice on how to build a healthcare IT practice from the ground up.

There are more health IT-related acronyms and abbreviations to make anyone's head spin. Use our terminology guide to better understand the healthcare IT services market. (February 25, 2011)

The healthcare IT legislation offers cash incentives to eligible providers, as long as they meet meaningful use and EHR requirements. All of these providers are potential clients for IT service providers, so understanding the requirements and incentives could help land healthcare customers. By Elaine J. Hom (February 16, 2011)

What Do You Need to Build a Viable Healthcare IT Practice? (February 04, 2011)

To deliver tailored IT services to healthcare customers, you need an effective go-to-market strategy. Here's how to get started. (April 29, 2010)

To capitalize on the healthcare opportunity, resellers and service providers need to understand the technology aspects of compliance and how that impacts security, manageability, and meaningful use. (August 31, 2010)

Ingram Micro's Bob LaClede discusses the latest trends and opportunities in the channel. (April 30, 2010)

Before you can cash in on new opportunities, you need to understand how the stimulus plan breaks down--from grants to tax cuts to incentives. Here's your guide. (September 04, 2009)

Channel partners serving the healthcare vertical could reap significant rewards from the nearly $950 million market for wireless devices. (August 28, 2009)

EMRapproved and Reflexion Networks are teaming up to offer education and certification programs through Reflexion’s global network of IT solution providers. (October 09, 2012)

Avnet will distribute Oracle's Health Sciences solutions, including Oracle's Healthcare Information Exchange (HIE) and Oracle Enterprise Healthcare Analytics. (February 21, 2012)

Healthcare IT spending is on the rise, and those dollars could be yours. Understanding the top concerns for healthcare providers and doctors could help you close the deal. (August 16, 2011)

The new Global IT Workforce Council will be made up of organization members as well as IT, academic, and government leaders with a shared need for IT talent. (August 10, 2011)

More than 1000 IT channel partner attendees are being encouraged to sharpen their business problem solving skills, rather than focusing too much on technology. (August 04, 2011)

The trade organization designed and launched the online forum as a means of providing channel pros with the resources needed to expand into healthcare IT. (March 11, 2011)

To capitalize on the healthcare opportunity, resellers and service providers need to understand the technology aspects of compliance and how that impacts security, manageability, and meaningful use. (August 31, 2010)

The distributor says it arranged for the services so solution providers could better help clients secure grant funding. (March 12, 2010)

In order to move into the healthcare field, we needed an appliance-based solution that we could install on-site and manage remotely. It also had to be easy to use and priced reasonably enough for us to earn solid margins. (December 01, 2009)

Before you can cash in on new opportunities, you need to understand how the stimulus plan breaks down--from grants to tax cuts to incentives. Here's your guide. (September 04, 2009)