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DEVISE: Data Exchange of Vaccine Information between an Immunization Information System and Electronic Health Record

Project Final Report (PDF, 237.23 KB) Disclaimer

Project Details -
Completed

Despite the widespread availability of immunizations, coverage of children falls short of the Healthy People 2010 and 2020 goals. Children receiving care from multiple sources can have scattered health records, placing them at risk for under- and over-immunization, and incomplete records. Importing data from an immunization information system (IIS) into an electronic health record (EHR), considered for a Meaningful Use Stage 3 objective, was hypothesized to help address these problems.

Since 2009, Columbia University has synchronized its immunization data with New York City’s IIS, allowing providers to query patients’ immunization records and import them into their own EHRs. Five community clinics piloted the vaccine information exchange. This project retrospectively compared immunization status for children by age group before and after implementation of the exchange. The specific aims of this project were as follows:

  • Assess the impact of immunization exchange from a regional IIS to a local EHR on under- and over-immunization of low-income urban children and adolescents. 
  • Assess the impact of immunization exchange from a regional IIS to a local EHR system on completeness of documentation of immunization status in the EHR. 

Statistical analyses indicated a significant increase in up-to-date immunization status for children of each age group and across all age groups after implementation. Over-immunization decreased for all age groups combined, and immunization record completeness increased. The information gained from this study helps to inform the potential impact of Stage 3 Meaningful Use measure options within Public Health and Clinical Data Registry Reporting.