Executive Director

Health Information Alliance, Inc. (HIA) seeks an entrepreneurial Executive Director to lead a new nonprofit, an intermediary health information exchange (HIE) in Connecticut for providers, consumers, health plans, pharmacies, hospitals, and other stakeholders. HIA is looking for someone who brings experience in health information technology to build the new organization, who can thrive in a startup-like environment. The Organization The newly formed Health Information Alliance, Inc. provides a single point of coordination for healthcare information across the state. HIA is funded by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) through the Federal Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act and Connecticut’s Department of Social Services and the Office of Health Strategy. Its vision is to be the statewide leader, advocate, and catalyst for the adoption and use of health information technology and health information exchange services that bring tangible, meaningful, and sustainable value to stakeholders across Connecticut. A “network-of-networks,” HIA offers interoperability of electronic health systems in order to improve patient care and save time and resources for healthcare systems. HIA’s tagline is, “Connecting people for better health.” HIA’s benefits to the people of Connecticut include:

• Enhanced care coordination through communication between providers, which is critical for patient care and leads to improved outcomes and patient safety.
• Access to the right information, at the right time for providers, patients, healthcare organizations, and other stakeholders.
• Improved efficiency and reliability by eliminating unnecessary paperwork and providing caregivers with clinical decision support tools.
• Improved quality and safety by reducing medication and medical errors.
• Increased cybersecurity by reducing potential hackers’ attack surfaces to a single point of connection.

HIA will offer information and analytic services, providing the capability to electronically share clinical information among disparate healthcare information systems while maintaining the meaning and security of the information being exchanged. The health information and analytic services, or ConnIE (Connecticut Information Exchange), will incorporate artificial intelligence to support automated clinical decisions. ConnIE allows health care systems and providers to effectively exchange clinical and administrative information, and in turn, helps users to deliver high quality, cost-effective care to patients. HIA is currently governed by a seven-member Board of Directors. The organization’s budget for 2020 is $12M and approximately $22M in FY21. The Position Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Executive Director will set up the HIE and lead the day-to-day operations of the organization. The Executive Director will build the leadership team to support key areas including but not limited to operations, finance and legal. Given the funding available through the HITECH Act, the Executive Director’s initial priorities will focus on building the information exchange and offsetting the costs of participating organizations. Starting in October 2021, the Executive Director will continue to build out the exchange, while focusing on the HIE’s long-term sustainability. This will include applying for additional state and federal funding via Medicaid, in alignment with Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS), and building out a funding strategy in the private sector. Leadership Outlook and Near-Term Priorities HIA’s priorities for 2020 – 2021 include:

• Establish trust across key stakeholder groups such as providers, consumers, health plans, pharmacies, and hospitals.
• Define the HIE “product” and develop a go-to-market strategy (i.e. product description, how the product functions, what the benefits are to the members of the exchange and the value provided to patients/customers).
• Ensure that the HIE platform is functioning well so that organizations can legally connect and are exchanging data.
• Develop a business model and a plan for HIA’s financial sustainability including federal and state funding, external grants and private sector products and services.

Key Responsibilities The Executive Director will build a strong relationship with the Department of Social Services and the Office of Health Strategy. They will work closely with the Board, the Investment Committee and the HIE team to deliver the health exchange. Primary responsibilities include to:

• Stand up the HIE administratively, including signing on and engaging providers, and providing general on-boarding.
• Implement a milestone-based program to provide technical assistance funding to participating organizations to drive adoption of the HIE.
• Build out concepts and implementation plan for various systems and processes, such as a statewide medication management system (SMMS), eConsent and eReferral.
• Manage HIA’s day-to-day operations, including budget and financials.
• Develop an operating model and a plan for HIA’s financial sustainability; pursue state and federal funding opportunities and develop products and offerings for the private sector.
• Represent HIA publicly, serving as a spokesperson and thought leader.
• Prepare staffing plan and build out a high performing team; provide inspiring leadership and strategic direction to the organization.
• Manage relationships with contractors, vendors and other partners.
• Collaborate with the Board of Directors to implement the HIE and liaise with the Investment Committee.

Experience and Attributes Candidates for this position will have an understanding of clinical care delivery and the healthcare industry (i.e. payers, providers), medical data management and exchange systems. The ED should be a strategic thinker who is capable of putting strategy into action. Strong leadership skills are essential for this role, including the ability to build trust and strong relationships, gain consensus while also navigating difficult decisions, and inspiring others. The ideal candidate will bring a variety of experiences and attributes, including:

• A strong commitment to HIA’s mission.
• Experience in health information technology, ideally having launched/led a health information exchange (preferably statewide).
• A nuanced appreciation of patient data privacy and consent management.
• Demonstrated experience working with state and federal funding, and an understanding of regulatory landscape including laws and funding sources.
• Experience with annual organizational budgeting and financial oversight.
• Experience leading and inspiring a team, building relationships with contractors and vendors.
• Inspirational and credible communicator, ability to articulate the value of HIA to various stakeholders including physicians, hospitals, elected officials and corporations.
• Ability to think creatively, set a vision and see the critical steps to move toward the vision.
• Ability to excel in ambiguity; possesses critical thinking skills.
• Senior level experience managing complex operations.
• Past success supporting and working with a board of directors in its governance role a plus.

Salary will be competitive and commensurate with experience. Application Process To apply, upload resume and cover letter including and salary expectations to https://curawebservices.mindscope.com/RAFFA04463_CURA/Aspx/form.aspx?lang=en&Job_ID=449&source=MNN . For other inquiries, contact Ginna Goodenow-Schirf at Ginna.Goodenow-Schirf@marcumllp.com. Resume reviews begin immediately.

Heath Information Alliance, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

  About Marcum LLP/Raffa – Marcum’s Nonprofit & Social Sector Group On behalf of Heath Information Alliance, Inc., Raffa – Marcum’s Nonprofit & Social Sector Group is working with the Board of Directors to advance the search. Founded in 1984 as Raffa PC and merged with Marcum LLP in 2018, we are a mission-driven professional services firm seeking to do more for nonprofits and socially conscious organizations like HIA. Learn more about our work at http://marcumllp.com/industries/nonprofit-social-sector.