Health Law

Pennsylvania "QUICKSTEPS" Program to apply $10 Million in Federal Funds Toward Promotion of Pediatric EHR

By William Maruca

Pennsylvania, get ready for another acronym: "QUICKSTEPS" (Quality Improvement and Care for Kids through Electronic Programs).  This is the state's new five-year pediatric EMR initiative, funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, or CHIPRA. Using $10 million in federal grants, the state's departments of Insurance and Public Welfare will partner with seven health systems throughout the state to 'implement testing and reporting on pediatric core measures of quality, promote the use of health information technology in children's health care delivery while demonstrating the impact of the pediatric electronic health record.' The seven systems participating in the pilot program are:

•     Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

•     Geisinger Health System

•     St. Christopher's Hospital for Children

•     Penn State Hershey Medical Center

•     PinnacleHealth System

•     Pocono Health System

•     West Penn Allegheny Health System

The program's goal is the increased transferability of health information for pediatric patients across different health care providers and social service agencies, to improve the quality and coordination of care.

For more info, see http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=18&objID=771853&mode=2

Full post as published by HIPAA Health Law & Technology on March 02, 2010 (boomark / email).