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Tuesday, March 18, 2008
260

Show me the Money: The Use of Recall as a Revenue Generator for the Immunization Provider

Anna C. Dragsbaek1, Monica R. Johnson1, Leila C. Sahni1, and Julie A. Boom2. (1) Immunization Project, Texas Children's Hospital, 6621 Fannin FC240, Houston, TX, USA, (2) Academic General Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX, USA


Learning Objectives for this Presentation:
By the end of the presentation participants will be able to:
1. Identify the efficacy of registry-based recall projects
2. Understand that immunization recall is cost effective and can generate revenue for the provider.

Background:
Client recall is a proven method of increasing immunization coverage levels, and is used by providers to identify and contact patients who are overdue for immunizations.

Setting:
23 urban clinics in the Greater Houston Area with a wide payor mix

Population:
Children aged 19-35 months.

Project Description:
High school and college students reconciled patients' paper immunization records with their corresponding electronic records in the Houston-Harris County Immunization Registry during June-August, 2007. After record consolidation, parents of children needing immunizations were contacted by mail and/or phone and encouraged to provide documentation of missing immunizations, if already administered, or to schedule an appointment to receive those needed.

Results/Lessons Learned:
Preliminary analysis of eight participating clinics identified 2,980 children as needing immunizations. Of these children, 32% (n=968) were up-to-date after record defragmentation, while an additional 18% (n=543) scheduled appointments. Furthermore, a total of 44% (n=1,304) of children originally recalled were brought up-to-date after record defragmentation and completion of the project.
Preliminary data for three participating clinics show that an average of $153.68 was billed for each child who scheduled an appointment after being recalled.
Lessons learned:
• Registry-based recall can aid in increasing childhood immunization rates, thus protecting against vaccine-preventable diseases.
• Low immunization rates may be due to fragmented documentation, and not incomplete immunization.
• Immunization recall is cost-effective, especially if implemented during early summer months when patient volume is traditionally low.
• Staff commitment and patient loyalty positively impacted the success of the project.