Electronic Patient Tracking in Disasters
| This unique innovation, a collaboration of public and private institutions, overcomes traditional challenges hospitals face during disasters, where large surges of incoming patients place a major burden on limited hospital resources. Through its novel use of technology, the Bethesda Hospitals' Emergency Preparedness Partnership (BHEPP) Patient Tracking and Locating System empowers hospital emergency management staff with real-time information about incoming patient counts, severity status, and location, assuring key decision makers have the information necessary to make timely decisions critical to patient care. Early successes include 100% accountability for patient transfers between hospitals, and a reduction of a historically 30 minutes to an hour, paper-based discharge process to a matter of minutes. The destination hospital now has immediate access to electronic patient data on the portal and time to prepare for the transferring patients’ arrival. The BHEPP Patient Tracking and Locating System directly supports HHS’s goals for protecting American’s health and safety during emergencies and promoting adoption and meaningful use of health information technology. It is a cost-effective, exportable model that promotes the re-use of existing hospital investment in technology and can be used to manage the flow of patient and information in diverse situations. |
Million Hearts™ Initiative
Public-private partnership aimed at preventing one million heart attacks and strokes in five years.
Learn how the public and private sectors are using innovative approaches to collaboration, information dissemination, and project management to prevent heart disease and stroke, two of the nation’s leading causes of death. This innovation brings together broad expertise and establishes a central focus on a range of public health and clinical practice strategies to address significant national health issues. More details ...
Preparing for the Zombie Apocalypse
What does a zombie apocalypse have to do with public health preparedness? Everything! Learn how a tongue-in-cheek blog post, complemented by social media outreach, drove an unprecedented number of visitors to CDC’s emergency webpage where they learned about protecting their families and homes during a disaster. More details ...
Connecting Kids with Dental Care
Making it easy for families to find the dental care their children need to grow up healthy.
Learn how the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and the States’ Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) agencies applied innovative methods to create a web-based locator tool to match kids enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP with oral health providers who will treat them. More details...
Electronic Patient Tracking in Disasters
In the face of a natural or man-made disaster, health care providers need to track patient counts, patient severity status, and patient location to make timely decisions.
The Bethesda Hospitals' Emergency Preparedness Partnership Patient Tracking and Locating System is an exportable suite of electronic tools that significantly advances the ability of hospitals to manage high volumes of incoming patients. More details...
Leveraging the Public to Catch Fugitives
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) is pursuing 170-plus fugitives who have defrauded Medicare, Medicaid, and taxpayers of hundreds of millions of dollars. Focusing attention on these health care criminals via the Most Wanted Health Care Fugitives Website effectively harnesses a previously untapped resource: the public.
Find out how public attention helps catch the crooks who steal our tax dollars. More details ...
Bridging the CHASM of Health Disparities
Community Health and Service Missions (CHASM) addresses the needs of underserved populations and builds communities’ health infrastructure while providing essential emergency management and response training for the United States Public Health Service (USPHS). More details ...
