by Bart Caylor | Jul 10, 2019
Telemedicine: What is it? Telemedicine is a 21st Century approach to delivering health care and addressing health workforce shortages. It involves the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients by means of telecommunications technology (video, picture, voice, etc.). It has been defined as “the practice of medicine using technology to deliver care at a distance. It occurs using telecommunications infrastructure between a patient (at an origination or spoke site) and a physician or other practitioner licensed to practice medicine (at a distant or hub site).”
Telemedicine in Indiana: In Indiana, physicians who offer telemedicine services are held to the same standards as a physician providing in-person health care services. In addition to holding a medical license, Indiana has a certification for telemedicine providers, administered by the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency (IPLA); however, physicians who predominately practice within Indiana are not required to file this certification . There are currently 226 physicians reported to hold this telemedicine certification . As of the 2017 medical license renewal period, 1,394 of Indiana’s licensed physicians (808 excluding those that reported radiology as their specialty) reported delivering care through telemedicine services. The purpose of this report is to describe characteristics of Indiana physicians that self-reported being engaged in providing telemedicine services in order to inform current and future related efforts. The data presented here are a subset from the 2017 Physician Licensure Survey Data Report .
by Bart Caylor | Jul 10, 2019
The following recommendations for Indiana’s Addiction Counselor Workforce were generated as a result of findings within this report, including: review and analysis of licensure data, state statute & rules, a literature review on occupational regulation, stakeholder engagement, and national environmental scan. Recommendations represent the synthesis of the information presented throughout the report.
To provide public comment on this document, please email comment to the Bowen Center at bowenctr@iu.edu. Public comment will be uploaded to this homepage and Bowen Staff may publish responses to commentary.
by Bart Caylor | Jul 10, 2019
The Bowen Center for Health Workforce Research and Policy (Bowen Center) has a rich history of collecting, analyzing and disseminating health workforce data and research for the State of Indiana. These efforts are important to informing health workforce policy and planning initiatives throughout the State. The physician workforce has long been regarded as the backbone of the health care system, making the collection and dissemination of timely data on supply and distribution critical to informing these initiatives. The 2017 Indiana Physician Fact Sheet presents key information collected from the physician licensure survey administered by the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency during the biennial license renewal cycle. As of November 2017, 27,473 physicians renewed their Indiana medical license. Of these, 11,085 self-identified as actively practicing in medicine and had a license address located within the State of Indiana. Demographically, the majority of Indiana’s physician workforce is male, white and non-Hispanic. Data demonstrate demographic shifts are occurring among Indiana physicians as a larger percentage of female physicians are in younger age groups as compared to male physicians. This is expected as more female physicians are entering this workforce. Data on the practice characteristics, specialty and geographic distribution, of Indiana physicians suggest trends similar to those observed nationally. The majority of Indiana’s physician workforce is concentrated in populous, urban areas, and over 60% of physicians report a specialty other than a primary care (Family Medicine/General Practice, General Internal Medicine, General Pediatrics and Obstetrics and Gynecology) or psychiatric (Adult/Child Psychiatry) specialty. Additional details on the demographic and practice characteristics of Indiana’s physician workforce are described and presented in this report. In addition to providing information on the overall physician workforce, this report also contains sub-sections specifically dedicated to primary care physicians and psychiatrists. The 2017 Indiana Physician Fact Sheet is a snapshot of Indiana’s physician workforce and offers key information that can be used to determine the best practices for improving health care for Indiana residents.
by Bart Caylor | Jul 10, 2019
The State of Indiana recognizes the importance of strengthening and retaining the behavioral health workforce in order to 1) tackle the opioid epidemic and 2) expand the workforce to areas in greatest need of mental health care. Financial incentives focused on workforce recruitment and/or retention are frequently used as a strategy to increase workforce capacity, reduce turnover, and reduce burnout. Student loan repayment assistance programs are one such strategy. These programs generally offer professionals relief from the administrative and economic stress of repaying student debt in exchange for practicing in underserved areas or with underserved populations for a specified time period.
In 2014, the Indiana Family and Social Services Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA) implemented a Mental Health and Addiction Services Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) targeting behavioral health professionals. The Bowen Center for Health Workforce Research and Policy (Bowen Center) was contracted by DMHA to perform an evaluation of the LRAP. The primary objectives of the evaluation were to 1) identify successful outcomes associated with the program and 2) determine areas in need of improvement. The following report describes the evaluation methods, discusses results, identifies successes, and offers recommendations for future program improvement
by Bart Caylor | Jul 10, 2019
Determining the supply and distribution of Indiana’s oral health workforce is crucial to understanding the capacity available to meet oral healthcare needs of Indiana citizens. Such data can also be used to inform initiatives aimed at increasing diversity, cultural competency, quality of care, and dental care access in underserved communities . Data presented in this report provide a snapshot of key demographic and practice characteristics for the oral health workforce in Indiana. The 2018 Indiana Oral Health Licensure Survey Data Report presents key information derived from data collected from the dentist and dental hygienist re-licensure survey administered by the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency (IPLA) during the license renewal period. In 2018, 4,001 dentists and 4,996 dental hygienists renewed their professional licenses. Of those who renewed their license, 2,697 dentists (67.4%) and 3,521 dental hygienists (70.4%) reported actively practicing and had a valid Indiana license address and were included in this report. Marion County encompasses the largest reported oral health workforce full-time equivalents (FTEs): 376.7 FTE for dentists and 235.2 FTE for dental hygienists. Based on the survey samples, there are significantly fewer oral health professionals available to serve Indiana citizens in rural, less populous counties such as LaGrange, Crawford and Jennings Counties. Additionally, a relatively low proportion of dentists reported offering services to low-income persons (i.e. accepting Medicaid). This report details, 2018 Indiana Oral Health Licensure Survey Data Report, presents a snapshot of data on the dentist and dental hygienist professions to provide stakeholders with information needed to improve the quality and accessibility of oral health care for Indiana residents through policymaking, workforce development, and resource allocation. Additional analyses and reports may be made available upon submission of a technical assistance request at https://family.medicine.iu.edu/hws.
