Applied Research

NNCC strives to provide effective research on primary care practice and services to educate public health, primary care, and wellness audiences. Additionally, NNCC initiates and participates in applied research to build the evidence base of programs and practices that improve health and wellness.

To build data-collection capacity, NNCC has become:

• Established as a health center controlled network – the Public Health Datamart Network and
• Become a provider in the eastern Pennsylvania Regional Extension and Assistance Center for Health Information Technology (PA REACH).

The Public Health Datamart Network is composed of five organizations: NNCC, the Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC), the Family Practice and Counseling Network, La Comunidad Hispana and Congreso de Latinos Unidos. Together these organizations are a network of eleven nurse-managed health clinics that study service utilization and clinical outcomes of care at nurse-managed health clinics and actively pursue opportunities to participate in quality improvement and research projects.

The Public Health Datamart Network was formed to provide ongoing support and facilitate collaboration between the clinics on health IT projects, research, and data related activities. All members of the network use an EHR and practice management system to collect and report business and clinical performance measures of patient, provider and practice quality. The network is recognized as a Primary Care Practice-based Research Network by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

NNCC staff has successfully implemented and manages the electronic health record (EHR) systems for three PHMC nurse-managed clinics and the La Comunidad Hispana clinic, which has three satelite sites as well. NNCC’s Health Information Systems Administrator, Grace Lee, spearheaded the implementation and is actively involved in assuring full utilization of the EHR systems.

For more information regarding NNCC's Public Health Datamart Network, please contact Grace Lee at JLIB_HTML_CLOAKING .

PA REACH

NNCC is actively building its expertise in implementing and maximizing EHRs in community-based settings. NNCC and PHMC are partnering with PA REACH to:

• Increase the number of primary care providers who actively use electronic EHR systems,
• Engage in health information exchange, and
• Report quality data that demonstrates "meaningful use."

These goals will be achieved by PA REACH collaborative partners providing on-site technical assistance to practices, as well as outreach and education efforts.

To learn more about PA REACH, please contact Anne Lynn, PA REACH East Recruitment Specialist, at JLIB_HTML_CLOAKING .