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Medical Homes in Utah
This page is designed to keep you informed about events and activities happening in Utah that will help improve access to medical homes for children with special health care needs (CSHCN).

Click on a topic below to learn more about what's going on in Utah
»Medical Home Initiatives »Resources
»Related Grant Initiatives »Educational Initiatives
»Partners in the State »Screening Initiatives

Medical Home Initiatives
This section provides information on state medical home initiatives/programs. States that are a part of the mentorship network will have a "Promise to the State" which outlines how they will achieve ensuring that all children have a medical home by 2010. This is based on the Healthy People 2010 goals which is a 10 year action plan to achieve and measure success for all CSHCN.

Utah Medical Home Contact:

Name: Barbara Ward RN BS - Project Coordinator, Utah Collaborative Medical Home
Contact: Phone: 801-584-8584 | Email: bward@utah.gov

The Utah Department of Health has been awarded an HRSA State Implementation Grant for Improving Services for Children and Youth with Autism
Duration of Program: Project period September 1, 2008-August 31, 2011
Contact Person: Rebecca Giles, MPH| rgiles@utah.gov
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES:

The Project’s overall goal is
to improve access to comprehensive, coordinated health care and related services for children and youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental disabilities.
Utah goals include 1) Improve identification and health care of children with ASD/DD y training family/pediatric Medical Homes , dentists, & other providers on screening, intervention, and community resources; 2) Use www.medhomeportal.org to expand ASD/DD evidence-based information available to families and providers; 3)Improve community providers' capacity for early recognition of signs of ASD to improve referral, diagnosis, treatment; 4) Expand Utah Family Voices' capacity to provide families with support coordination.

The Utah Department of Health completed an MCHB State Implementation Grant for Integrated Community Systems of Services for CSHCN - Abstract
Duration of Program: Project period May 1, 2005- April 30, 2008.
Contact Person: Barbara Ward, RN | bward@utah.gov
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES:

The Project’s overall goal is the systematic integration of community-based services for CYSHCN and their families throughout Utah. Component Goals included: 1) Design and implement the leadership and infrastructure to accomplish and sustain this integration; 2) Using the Learning Collaborative model, CSHCN offered 5 full day learning sessions to 12 Pediatric Practice teams, and integrated the six core components into Utah community systems; 3) Through the medical home website and three community summits the bureau provided information to support the integration of the 6 Core Components into communities. For more information about this grant and the program objectives click here. This project brought to 20 the number of trained pediatric practice teams in the state who are implementing the medical home model in their practices.

Utah Statewide Medical Home Implementation Plan: Promise to the State

Utah Collaborative Medical Home Project: www.medhomeportal.org

MCHB Medical Home Project: Abstract
Project Period: Three years From: 3/31/01 to 3/30/04
The purpose of this project was to develop and implement a statewide system to support medical
homes for children with special health care needs (CSHCN) in primary care settings. Five pediatric and family practice teams were trained in the medical home model of caring for CSHCN.

MCHB Integrated Services Grant "Opening Utah's Doors" : Abstract
Project Period: 4 Years—July 2001 to July 2005 -Grant Completed -This project continues as UtahClicks www.utahclicks.com
Name: Adrienne Akers
Contact : akers@go-dss.com, 435-752-9129
Purpose: Some families who have a child with special needs feel confused and overwhelmed in an attempt to find services that their child needs most. This website allows for a family to apply only once for several services including: Medicaid, CHIP, CSHCN, and EI.

MCHB Grant "Measuring and Monitoring": Abstract

Project Completed:
The M&M Project was funded by DSCSHN and was a collaborative endeavor of the Early Intervention Research Institute at Utah State University and six states: Vermont, South Carolina, Ohio, Arizona, Utah, and Oregon. The purpose of the project is to understand current state capacity to measure the CSHCN outcomes and to help them enhance their capacity through expanded measurement and monitoring efforts. A critical step for reaching this end was to develop indicators to facilitate outcome measurement.

Utah completed the National Initiative for Child Health Quality (NICHQ) Medical Home Learning Collaborative - A fifteen-month collaborative activity to improve care for the growing population of CSHCN. This initiative focused on 3 practices in the state and assisted them in completing a quality improvement process to provide medical homes to their patients with special needs. It also assisted in building the capacity of Utah's CSHCN and other health department programs to support and extend this approach after the completion of the project period. For more information you can go to the project overview.

Utah Care Notebook Care Notebook pdf file
This Care Notebook is an organizing tool for families who have children with special health care needs. Utah created the book to help families keep track of important health care information, list providers and community organizations contact information, prepare for appointments and file and share health history. Utah Family Voices shared this guide so that other resource centers may use this as a template when developing similar tools. A Spanish version is available for download and/or printing on the medical home website in the family section, http://www.medhomeportal.org/.

Related Grant Initiatives
This section provides information on current state grants that are working on medical home initiatives. This includes the grant abstract as well as key contacts for the grant.

The Mountain States Regional Collaborative (AZ, CO, MT, NM, NV, TX, UT & WV) was awarded a Medical Home Visting Professorship (2008)

Medical Home Visiting Professorship Pilot Program

The American Academy of Pediatrics National Center for Medical Home Initiatives for Children with Special Needs and the American College of Medical Genetics' National Coordinating Center for the Regional Genetics and Newborn Screening Service Collaboratives (NCC) in partnership with the ACMG and MCHB recently developed a pilot visiting professorship program. This program focuses on the specific topic areas of genetics and medical home and also establishing linkages between Regional Genetics and Newborn Screening Services Collaboratives (RCs) and AAP Chapters.

Utah Family Voices Family to Family Health Information
This is an ongoing project that has an established a Family to Family Health Information Center that provides information, referral, education and support to families of children and youth with special health care needs and professional partners through out the state.  Family/professional partnerships are a key concept in all areas of project activities.  The initial project started October 1, 2004 with a grant from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and was successfully funded to continue and enhance the Center through a grant from the Maternal And Child Health Bureau in June 2007 and will contine through May 2010.  This project works in partnership with the Utah Parent Center, the Bureau of Children with Special Health Care Needs, the Utah Medical Home Program and the Utah Regional Leadership Education in Nuerodevelopmental Disabilities Program.  A vital function is to continue to partner and help to support the family section of the nationally recognized Utah Collaborative Medical Home website.
                Name: Gina Pola-money
                Contact: Utahfamilyvoices@juno.com

Early Hearing Detection & Intervention (EHDI) Contact(s):
State EHDI programs promote universal newborn hearing screening, develop effective tracking and follow-up as a part of the public health system, promote appropriate and timely diagnosis of the hearing loss, prompt enrollment in appropriate Early Intervention, ensure a medical home for all newborns and
strive to eliminate geographic and financial barriers to service access.

Name: Rich Harward M.S.
Contact: Phone: 801-584-8215 | Fax: 801-584-8492 | rharward@utah.gov

URLEND Utah Regional Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities http://urlend.org/
The purpose of the URLEND Program is to provide opportunities for personnel from a variety of health related disciplines to increase knowledge and skills in providing services and supports to children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and their families as part of an interdisciplinary team.

The Utah Regional Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities-Autism Enhanced (URLEND-AE) is a new supplemental award (September, 2008) from the Maternal Child Health Bureau. It was awarded to the URLEND faculty to provide increased training to pre-service and in-serve professionals to meet the needs of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders.  There is an urgent public health need to increase the number of professionals who can provide educational information, assessment, and diagnostic services to rule in/out ASD, conduct research on ASD including with evaluation and screening tools, and provide evidence-based interventions to individuals with ASD (Combating Autism Act, 2006). 
Name: Judith Holt, PhD Judith@cpd2.usu.edu
            Sarah Winter, MD Sarah.winter@hsc.utah.edu

CHARM Child Health Advanced Records Management http://charm.health.utah.gov/
The Utah Department of Health (UDOH) has established the Child Health Advanced Record Management (CHARM) Program to develop integrated data sets to produce an accurate and useful electronic child health profile. The CHARM project is funded in part by the HRSA MCHB State Systems Development Initiative (SSDI). The CHARM initiative involves a collaborative effort to create an electronic health record for every child in Utah and allow real-time digital access and data sharing among authorized health care programs and partners. CHARM is being developed to provide an easy to use, technology based way of providing access to integrated health information at the point of service. The long-term goal of CHARM is to integrate early childhood databases to provide Utah families, private and public health care providers with secure, confidential access to a comprehensive, integrated public health database to track the health of Utah children.

Champions for Inclusive Communities: Early Intervention Research Institute, Utah State University: http://www.championsinc.org

Purpose: This national center provides national leadership to the Division of Services for Children with Special Health Needs (DSCSHN), Title V leaders and their partners in achieving the division's outcome #5: Service systems for children with special health care needs will be organized so families can use them easily and be satisfied with their services. Activities include: a) website liked to relevant initiatives to support communities, b) products and strategies for collaboration and integration of services, c) identification of evidence-based practices to achieve outcome #5, and d) a community recognition program.

Genetics MCHB Grant: Genetics MCHB Grant
Purpose: The purpose of the Utah Genetics Implementation Project (UGIP) is to ensure that appropriate newborn conditions are screened in Utah, and to provide an enhanced system of care for Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN) with these conditions through data integration, medical homes, and, when appropriate, early intervention.

Hemophilia MCHB Grant: Hemophilia MCHB Grant
Project Period: June 1, 2002 through May 31, 2005
Purpose: The purpose of this proposal is to continue the family-centered, community-based comprehensive hemophilia care supporting the successful existing structure of Hemophilia Treatment Centers (HTCs) in MCHB Region VIII.

Partners in the State
This section provides information on who in the state (individuals and agencies) are working together to create medical homes for children.

American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Chapter:
Email Cathy Oyler at: coyler@ips-uaap.org

American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) Chapter: www.aafp.org/chapterweb/utah.html

 

Title V Block Grant to States
Title V of the Social Security Act is one of the largest Federal block grant programs. It leads the nation in ensuring the health of all mothers, infants, children, adolescents, and children with special health care needs (CSHCN). Title V is administered by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) as part of the Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Title V and Children with Special Health Care Needs
MCHB Objective: Support development and implementation of comprehensive, culturally competent, coordinated systems of care for the estimated 18 million U.S. children who have or are at risk for chronic physical, developmental, behavioral or emotional conditions and who also require health and related services of a type or amount beyond that required by children generally.

MCH Contact
Nan Streeter
Director, Maternal and Child Health
Address: PO Box 142001
Salt Lake City, UT 84114-2001
Phone: 801-538-6869| Fax: 801-538-9409
Email: nanstreeter@utah.gov

CSHCN Contact
Holly Williams
Bureau Director, Children with Special Health Care Needs
Address: PO Box 144610
Salt Lake City, UT 84114-4610
Phone: 801-584-8202 | Fax: 801-584-8488
801-584-8488
Email: hollywilliams@utah.gov

Baby Watch Early Intervention/Part C Coordinator:
The Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities (Part C of IDEA) is a federal grant program that assists states in operating a comprehensive statewide program of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities, ages birth through age 2 years, and their families.

Name: Susan Ord, Part C Coordinator
Contact: Phone: (801) 584-8441| Fax: (801) 584-8496 | Email: sord@utah.gov
Web Site: www.utahbabywatch.org/

Section 619/Special Education for ages 3-5 Coordinators:
This program provides free appropriate public education (FAPE) for children, ages 3 through 5 years, with disabilities:

Name: Connie Nink, 619 Coordinator
Contact: Phone: (801) 538-7948 | Fax: (801) 538-7991 | Email: cnink@usoe.k12.ut.us
Web site: www.usoe.k12.ut.us/sars/

State Interagency Coordinating Council (ICC) Chairs:
The ICC advises appropriate agencies on the unmet needs in early childhood special education and early intervention programs for children with disabilities, assists in the development and implementation of policies that constitute a statewide system, and assists all appropriate agencies in achieving full participation, coordination, and cooperation for implementation of statewide system.

Name: Eileen Chamberland
Contact: 801-221-9930 ext. 110 | fax 801-221-1649 |echamberland@kotm.org

Name: Tandi Cichoski
Contact: 801-374-3539 | dcichoski2002@yahoo.com

Name: Debbie Justice
Contact: 435-673-5353 | fax 435-673-5393 | djustice@tlc4families.org

University of Utah Department of Pediatrics

Contact: Chuck Norlin MD
Website:
http://www.ped.med.utah.edu

Utah Pediatric Partnership to Improve Healthcare Quality is a collaborative effort by organziations and individuals with a common interest in promoting evidence-based best practices and assisting physicians in implementing quality improvement at a practice level.

Name: Sandra Debry, MBA Sandra.debry@hsc.utah.edu
            Website:  www.upiqhome.org

Utah State University/ Centers for Persons with Disabilities and Early Intervention Research Institute

Website: http://www.cpd.usu.edu/

Utah Clicks

Website: www.utahclicks.org

Resources/Documents

Utah Clicks www.utahclicks.org (previously “Opening Utah’s Doors”) helps families find and apply for state programs and services. You can now fill out and complete applications for a variety of Utah programs using this streamlined process.

Utah Collaborative Medical Home Website www.medhomeportal.org

Measuring and Monitoring: eiri.usu.edu/projects/MandM/

State Waiver Information: www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidStWaivProgDemoPGI/08_WavMap.asp
Waivers are the result of a process that allows state Medicaid agencies to apply for and receive permission from HCFA to provide services not otherwise covered by Medicaid and/or to do so in ways not described by the Social Security Act. Most Medicaid managed care programs require Waivers. The Waivers, which can differ greatly, are known by their numbers (1115, 1119), or as home-and community-based, or as Katie Beckett Waivers.

Educational Initiatives
This section provides information on training initiatives on the medical home. Some states will discuss their outreach projects in relation to physicians, families, and the community.
No information is currently available for this category.

Utah Pediatric Partnership to Improve Healthcare Quality: www.upiqhome.org is a collaborative effort by organizations and individuals with a common interest in promoting evidence-based best practices and assisting physicians in implementing quality improvement at the practice level.

URLEND Utah Regional Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities http://urlend.org/
The purpose of the URLEND Program is to provide opportunities for personnel from a variety of health related disciplines to increase knowledge and skills in providing services and supports to children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and their families as part of an interdisciplinary team

Screening Initiatives
This section provides information on surveillance and screening initiatives in the state.

State Newborn Screening & Genetics Programs:
http://health.utah.gov/newbornscreening/
This program provides a statewide system for early identification and referral of newborns with metabolic, endocrine and hematologic disorders that can produce mental retardation, disability or death if not treated early. The disorders are congenital hypothyroidism, galactosemia, hemoglobinopathies, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, biotinidase, and disorders of organic acid, fatty acid and amino acid metabolism. In 2005, 99.5% of all Utah newborns (51,517 births) were screened for the state’s mandated disorders.

Newborn Hearing Screening / Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI):
http://www.infanthearing.org/states/utah/index.html
CSHCN is responsible for the legislative mandate to provide hearing screening for all Utah’s newborns and to keep a current database of the results and activities concurrent with this service. In 2007, 98% (52,835) of all Utah newborns were screened for hearing loss in 42 birthing facilities statewide. In 2005, Hearing Speech and Vision Services (of CSHCN) received a three-year HRSA grant to help improve the statewide system and reduce loss to follow-up. HSVS also collaborates with UDOH programs to improve data integration for newborns and infants with funding from a CDC EHDI grant.

Assuring Better Health and Child Development (ABCD) Program:Project Completed
http://12.109.133.213/_catdisp_page.cfm?LID=2ED00011-7622-11D6-BD1500A0CC76FF4C
The Assuring Better Child Health and Development (ABCD) Program is funded by the Commonwealth Fund, administered by National Academy of State Health Policy, and designed to assist states in improving the delivery of early child development services for low-income children and their families.

ABCD II: Project Completed
http://12.109.133.213/_docdisp_page.cfm?LID=D7D80609-B1EA-452C-96078F6D2E884FFF
The ABCD II Initiative, launched in 2003, is designed to assist states in building the capacity of Medicaid programs to deliver care that supports children’s healthy mental development.

State Resources on the Internet

Note: The information provided on the state pages was submitted by the state medical home teams. As this is not an exhaustive list, please let us know if you have additions for your state resource page. You can contact us at: medical home@aap.org.

Last Updated October 23, 2008

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