Last year’s HIMSS Workforce Survey indicated that 31% of HCOs had to place IT initiatives on hold due to staffing shortages, while 43% cited the lack of a qualified talent pool as a challenge to appropriately meeting their staffing needs. Today, Stoltenberg Consulting announced thirteen consultants having graduated from its Consultant Development Program to date. The program, designed to provide hospitals with first-time, certified consultants, continues to deliver cost-effective results to the company’s hospital customers. The consultants in the program, titled Consultant I’s, undergo rigorous training and work closely with Stoltenberg’s team of experienced consultants on projects.
The demand remains high for a capable workforce in the healthcare technology industry; to date, hospitals that have leveraged Consultant I’s from the program have seen over 25 percent increase in cost savings on IT implementation projects, with the value and contributions of the consultants adding to an even greater overall ROI.
Program Overview
Recent graduates of the Consultant Development Program gained considerable experience through direct involvement in implementation and optimization projects in hospitals around the country, allowing them to establish expertise in clinical, ambulatory, document management and financial areas. Overall, the Consultant I’s spent more than 2,000 hours in training for projects, nearly 9,000 hours on projects and over 15,000 hours serving the help desk service line from Stoltenberg, over the two-year program.
“There are very few paths in health IT that offer significant hands-on training and opportunities to young professionals. By working closely with a senior consultant from Stoltenberg, I was able to hone important skills at the end-user level while gradually developing experience with Soarian Clinicals Documentation building and CPOE. Programs that offer valuable lessons and opportunities, such as the Consultant Development Program, can be key in changing the perception of a career in health IT to be more attractive for young professionals,” said a recent graduate.
Previous graduates of the Consultant Development Program have become fully active team members, and in some cases, team leads on IT projects within hospitals across the country. Mentoring provided by senior consultants have allowed the Consultant I’s to far exceed expectations normally set for young HIT professionals.
“I started this program with minimal experience, but by the end, I had gained certain insights in health IT I may have otherwise only learned through multiple years in the industry. From formal vendor training for multiple certifications, to my time taking calls for a university healthcare system with the Stoltenberg Help Desk Service Line, the program greatly prepared me for working and genuinely helping end-users,” said another graduate. “The Consultant Development Program provides a rare opportunity to uniquely groom young HIT professionals for success and I look forward to seeing what is to come from the program in the future.”
