Monday, October 18, 2004 - 10:55 AM
2

Measuring and Projecting Immunizations Data Entry Resources

BACKGROUND:
In Rhode Island, providers send immunizations records either electronically or in barcoded forms for manual data entry for the estimated 130,000 children in the KIDSNET database. Due to difficulties getting providers' billing data electronically, scarce resources and the desire to enter complete immunization histories on all children in the database, there is a frequent backlog and projections for becoming up to date were difficult to make. To gather evidence of data entry resources needed, and to help evaluate if other technology such as scannable forms were cost effective, KIDSNET conducted time studies in 2003 and in 2004, to consolidate information that helped measure time needed to perform data entry.

OBJECTIVE:
Demonstrate the usefulness of time studies and how to implement them and use them for management, planning and projection purposes.

METHOD:
Time studies were designed and conducted in two consecutive years. In 2003, time spent in each specific task was recorded, and an average time needed for each task calculated. After reallocating resources, a second time study was conducted to measure improvement in time needed to enter immunization histories.

RESULT:
The time study conducted in 2004 showed 18% improvement in the speed at which histories are entered. This process helped decision making, evidenced efficiencies, and resulted in more timely data entry. Additionally, KIDSNET decided to implement scannable technology for barcoded forms, which will be completed by the end of 2004.

CONCLUSION:
Having strong, measurable evidence of the efficiency of data entry resources is an easy method to distribute tasks, allocate resources and serves as a valuable management tool to measure improvements and project future needs.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
To show the process, content, findings and projections resulted from the time studies, and the utility of having such information for management and projection purposes.

  Recorded presentation

See more of Costs and Cost Savings to Providers and States when Using Immunization Registries
See more of The 2004 Immunization Registry Conference