IHA, offering innovative healthcare workforce solutions for system reform, to Partner with HealthStream

Five-year agreement includes co-development of new courseware, bundling of content for Performing Provider Systems, and learning management system functionality essential for reporting

CLIFTON PARK, NY (03/05/2015)(readMedia)-- CLIFTON PARK, New York -The Iroquois Healthcare Association (IHA), representing 54 hospitals and health systems in 32 counties across Upstate New York, today announced that it has selected HealthStream's solutions to offer to the healthcare workforce of approximately one million employees in New York State. HealthStream, Inc. (NASDAQ: HSTM) is a leading provider of workforce development and research solutions for the healthcare industry. Through the five-year agreement, HealthStream's Learning Center will be offered to the Performing Provider Systems (PPSs) for enterprise-wide training and re-training of the workforce. HealthStream and IHA will also co-develop and introduce to the market a new course that targets the needs of the workforce to understand the overarching intent of the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment program (DSRIP).

HealthStream's solutions will help ensure that the workforce remains highly skilled and competent in the care delivered in the integrated delivery systems being established by the PPSs. The DSRIP program promotes community-level collaborations and focus on system reform, specifically a goal to achieve a 25 percent reduction in avoidable hospital use over five years. PPSs are regional collaboratives involving hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, FQHCs, behavioral health and community health within a multiple county geography. There are seven PPSs within the IHA region and 25 PPSs in New York State. Projects are unique to each PPS but metrics and objectives are similar and everyone is accountable for meeting the State's goals. Success is dependent upon significant reporting on projects. HealthStream's Learning Center provides training opportunities and tracks participant-level data and outcomes for all training and education, which can be aggregated for each PPS.

"Through our agreement with HealthStream, we are supporting the development of our healthcare workforce to integrate services across the community with a patient-centered focus," said Gary J. Fitzgerald, president and chief executive officer of IHA. "We look forward to working with HealthStream to offer their solutions and partner with them to develop learning tools that will benefit the workforce and communities across New York State as our delivery system transforms."

Together, IHA and HealthStream plan to co-develop a new course for the PPSs to explain DSRIP and the intended change in the health care service delivery system statewide. By joining the workforce expertise of the association, which includes seven performing provider systems with the largest provider of online learning solutions in healthcare, a unique opportunity is created to innovate and offer the library of content for the PPS workforce that includes hospital, home care, community, behavioral health, and long term care professionals. Courseware bundles resulting from this partnership will be offered exclusively through HealthStream to the PPSs.

"We are delighted to partner with a company as progressive as IHA to offer a workforce development solution to the Performing Provider Systems in New York State," said Robert A. Frist, Jr., Chief Executive Officer, HealthStream. "It is apparent that IHA strives to provide workforce development solutions for their members and the communities they serve. Their understanding of the impact that DSRIP has on the delivery of care and the change in skills and perspective by the workforce is evident through their decision to provide HealthStream's solutions. I look forward to working with them in the coming months and years."

###

About Iroquois

The Iroquois Healthcare Association (IHA) represents hospitals and health systems in 32 counties in Upstate New York. The mission of IHA is to serve as a resource and leader to support its members and the communities they serve through advocacy, education, information, cost-saving initiatives, and business solutions. For more information, please visit www.iroquois.org.

About HealthStream

HealthStream (NASDAQ: HSTM) is dedicated to improving patient outcomes through the development of healthcare organizations' greatest asset: their people. Our unified suite of software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions are used by, collectively, approximately 4.3 million healthcare employees in the U.S. for training & learning management, talent management, performance assessment, and managing simulation-based education programs. Our research solutions provide valuable insight to healthcare providers to meet HCAHPS requirements, engage their workforce, and enhance physician alignment. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, HealthStream has additional offices in Laurel, Maryland, Austin, Texas, and Brentwood, Tennessee. For more information, visit http://www.healthstream.com or call 800-933-9293.