BACKGROUND: The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) uses a web-based portal to track participants’ public health (PH) data submission under the Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program. DHMH is updating and enhancing the portal to facilitate user work flow and reduce the administrative burden of compliance with the Meaningful Use (MU) requirements. This enhancement project’s main objectives are to:
- Enable providers to test PH data submission to DHMH with the use of a state-specific validation tool, and therefore facilitate their transition to report electronically.
- Expedite the PH onboarding process (includes registration, testing and validation, and move to production) by allowing providers to access the portal, track their own onboarding status, view and update their own information, and download any relevant MU documentation.
- Reduce the administrative burden of compliance with the MU PH reporting requirements for DHMH and providers.
METHODS: To assess the portal enhancement success, DHMH will compare the effectiveness of the enhancements through a pre-post study design. We will measure the following approximately four months before and after the enhancements are in place:
- Effectiveness of the validation tool based on number of successful (or error-free) files submitted.
- Number of successful login attempts by providers and number of providers that update their information and/or download documentation.
- Average number of days it takes to onboard a provider (from registration to production).
RESULTS: We expect that the enhancements will:
- Reduce the number of providers who have registered to report PH information and are waiting for DHMH to contact them before they begin testing and validation.
- Decrease the average amount of time it takes providers to complete the onboarding process for PH reporting by allowing them to track their own progress.
- Reduce the administrative burden of compliance with the MU requirements.
CONCLUSIONS: We expect that the enhancements to the portal will reduction the administrative burden of MU compliance and reduce the average length of time it takes to onboard a provider. The following lessons learned from this project can be applied to other PH information system development efforts:
- Detailed planning and clearly-defined software requirements must be understood and agreed upon before starting any software development.
- Informatics professionals have an important role facilitating communication between PH professionals and information system developers.