May 2, 2003
Subject: Letter of Recommendation - HIPAA Academy
To Whom It may Concern
In February of 2003, Mid-Willamette Valley Senior Services Agency contacted the HIPAA Academy to provide HIPAA Privacy Training to our staff. I had attended the firm’s ‘HIPAA Privacy Training’ for the State of Oregon and after making inquiries, I was directed to Lorna Waggoner, the Regional Account Manager. With the HIPAA compliance deadline fast approaching, our Agency was eager to get our 150 staff trained, to represent the State of Oregon as a fully compliant business associate. After making initial contact with Bob, I requested a proposal for the HIPAA Academy’s services. Bob initiated several telephone calls to my office, with questions, comments and suggestions, with the aim of gaining more than a casual understanding of the operations of our Agency. Bob was available to take phone calls immediately and returned messages, to the ones he missed, in record time. I got the distinct impression that he was not merely interested in selling us a prepackaged product but that he was interested in effective training and preparation of our staff in the HIPAA Privacy Rule. Even after engaging in a search for training services as an internal policy requirement, no other organization compared in the areas of cost, expertise and experience in the varied areas of HIPAA, structuring and presenting the training plan, and professionalism and effort.
While the training was being written by the HIPAA Academy, the Academy initiated a telephone conference with the senior directors and managers to speak more of the training and ascertain that our requests matched their delivery. The selected trainer, Linda Buelna, met with the Agency’s leadership to present the training slides to us ahead of time so we could make adjustments where necessary. We felt, at the end of the day, that all concerned understood the goals and objectives of our Agency, in the context of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. The HIPAA Academy worked with us - not just for us - to provide exceptional training to our staff.
The HIPAA Academy provides services across the United States, but we felt that we were a priority group being served. I am sure that this is indicative in all of the services they provide to other organizations. Bob, without a doubt, represented us as if he were a partner in our business himself. What impressed me most was his knowledge of the HIPAA Privacy Rule and his desire to share that knowledge even before we established a contractual arrangement. The staff of the HIPAA Academy has a strong grasp of HIPAA, combined with a common sense knowledge of how organizations work.
am pleased to provide this letter of recommendation, on behalf of the HIPAA Academy. The HIPAA Academy has been invaluable in helping our Agency during a short period of time in which we had to plan, organize and conduct training. We will, no doubt, never forget their services.
It is a treat to be able to recommend the services of the HIPAA Academy to other firms and individuals.
Sincerely,
Patricia Anderson, PHR
Human Resource Analyst
HIPAA Officer
