Board of Health makes advancement in tech system

BY BRYCE KELLY

Mt. Pleasant News

The Henry County Board of Health is now several clicks ahead of other public health agencies in Iowa when it comes to technology, being the first in the state to link their electronic databases with state systems that track immunization records.

?With this electronic exchange now in place, we are getting more accurate, complete information to and from the state,? said community health director, Travis Johnson of the board?s immunization registry?s recent uplink with the state?s electronic immunization recording system. ?Now, when a patient comes to our immunization clinic, all their relevant health and billing information is automatically sent to the state?s immunization registry. That?s big for our patients and for us.?

?If someone came to our clinic and got a vaccine, and then they went to a different clinic somewhere else in the state, the doctor treating that patient would be able to pull records and find out what immunizations that patient had been given at our clinic and vice versa,? Johnson continued.

Board member Rose Lauer commented that she was very happy to hear the news, saying she feels the benefits will be monumental.

?This is great to hear, especially when we talk about our kids,? she said. ?So many kids that are coming into our school district or for kids that are leaving the district will have all their immunization records readily available. That?s hugely beneficial for them, the school district and for parents.?

The electronic exchange officially went live at HCHC on Jan. 5, 2016, and Johnson said that besides a few minor glitches, the transition has been virtually seamless.

The board also reported that auditing for immunizations in county elementary and middle schools, preschools, and licensed day care facilities have been completed and submitted to the state for review.

Besides talk surrounding immunizations, mental health was another topic of discussion during the board?s meeting on Tuesday. In regard to mental health services, the board of health, along with HCHC?s community health staff, does provide services for those needing medical injections for various mental health issues.

Within that service, patients are able to come to the community health clinics and receive mental health-related medical injections from a trained nurse. The board of health also facilitates programs that allow home health aides to work with patients directly in their homes and provide a wide variety of home medical care.

?What we are finding (with regards to mental health) is that we are seeing more needs for service by patients with some kind of mental health issue,? said Johnson. ?In-home needs for patients with mental health issues are becoming a bigger thing. Overall, we are also seeing more patients needing the medical injection service that our nurses provide.?

Some of the most common issues that home health aides are reporting, according to Johnson, are related to medication management. According to Johnson, many mental health patients are often prescribed medications that, if not taken properly, can have major side effects that hinder the patients overall health and quality of living.

And while Johnson says the need is there to further assist in-home patients with mental health issues, he did point out to the board that the number of patients coming to HCHC?s ER for mental health-related issues has declined. This, Johnson says, has in part to do with the in-home services already being provided by HCHC and the community health staff.

?The question I think we have opened up through discussions with our home health aides is how do we work with the programs we already have and expand the services we provide to best fit the patients we serve.?

While no action was taken on the subject, the board did ask that the topic be looked at in more detail during future meetings.

In other news the board of health approved the following items:

? The fiscal year 2017 budget

? The 2016 immunization grant contract

? A minor amendment to the EMS systems development grant

Before adjourning, the board also elected officers for 2016, voting to keep the current board officers in their current positions for another year. Rose Lauer will remain board chair, while Tom Miller will remain vice-chair for 2016.

The next board of health meeting will be held on Feb. 23, 2016, at 12:30 p.m., in the HCHC Board Room.