Going Green: Utilizing New Technology to Facilitate Home Visiting, Data Collection, and Quality Assurance

Objective: To provide audience members with an outline on how to simplify data collection processes through the use of new technology available to home visiting programs, and provide a description of the Healthy Start, Inc. model of utilizing data collection and abstraction on health and social issues disparately effecting women of color in targeted communities resulting in specific outreach and case management strategies to promote positive outcomes for women and their families.

Background: Healthy Start, Inc. utilizes a multidimensional approach for service implementation to women, men and children with the goals of reducing infant mortality, poor birth outcomes and elimination health disparities. By using portable computers, Healthy Start, Inc. can capture the data accurately, save on printing costs, and evaluate the data accurately.

Methods: Audience will receive an interactive demonstration, as well as program strategies and outcomes resulting from data analysis, both quantitative and qualitative.

Results: By using portable computers, Healthy Start, Inc. can capture and download the data accurately and quickly, save on costly printing costs and in turn save paper, and evaluate the data accurately. The amount of money saved from the reduced paper costs was $54,000 over the four year project period. By measuring the accuracy of data entry before the paperless system was instituted and after, it was found that there was a 9% increase.

Lessons Learned: Audience will receive best practice model concepts including program design, specific case management tools and examples, evaluative assessment items and take home packets outlining the poster session.