Government Technology - September 2008 - (Page 32)

social services S TAT E | F E D E R A L j j Synopsis: Texas implements a firstof-its-kind health records system for foster children. Record Off the BY PAT R I C K M I C H E L S | C O N T R I B U T I N G W R I T E R On the Agencies: Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Technology: Online medical records. Contact: Sloane Cody, program manager, superior Health Passprot, 512/6921465 ext. 22172, scody@centene.com. Charts T Electronic Health Passports bring rich detail to foster children’s once-mysterious medical histories. SEPT_08 o anticipate the future, take a look at the past. It makes particular sense in health care when critical decisions are based on patients’ medical history. However, for foster children who arrive at new homes with few or no treatment records, knowing the past poses a major challenge. Documented allergies, immunizations and illnesses are often shrouded in mystery when foster parents welcome a child. That changed for Texas foster children April 1, when the state Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) rolled out the online Health Passport. Today more than 30,000 foster children have electronic records that update most information automatically and follow children when they move to a new home. The Health Passport, one feature in an overhaul of the Texas foster child health-care system, is the latest program in a larger trend toward electronic health records. It’s the first program of its kind in the country, but project developers say other states may soon follow Texas’ lead. From insurance claims to food allergies, a foster child’s medical data is housed by an array of companies, state agencies and practitioners. The Texas Health Passport draws these data sources together and presents them side by side. Through a Web-based interface, each child’s guardian, doctors and “medical consenter” (a legal designation often, but not necessarily, awarded to the foster parent) can access the passport, review the child’s medical history and make necessary updates. Meanwhile, insurance claims, lab results and most other medical data update automatically. The result is a more complete and accurate snapshot of the child’s medical history. 32 http://www.govtech.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Government Technology - September 2008

Government Technology - September 2008 Contents Point of View On the Scene Big Picture Four Questions for... Up Close Fork in the Road On Time and On Target On the Record, Off the Charts Government’s Greatest Asset? Easy Access Finding the Money Security in the Wireless World The Case for Mobility Spectrum Products Two Cents signal:noise Digital Communities Contents A New Government Paradigm News is Now Transformation Web 2.0 Style Protecting Community Media Thinking Regionally Government at La-Z-Boy Speed

Government Technology - September 2008

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