Back Office Challenges to Reengineering

1. Back Office Challenges to Reengineering Kathlene A. Mueller, South Dakota Linda Caniglia, Pennsylvania Ken Jones, Florida

2. Describe your reengineering project? • South Dakota • Implemented an integrated birth, metabolic and hearing screening program • Implemented an electronic marriage system • Implemented a Statewide Correspondence Accounting System which includes 64 county Register of Deeds. • Implemented an Electronic Death Registration System

3. Describe your reengineering project? • Pennsylvania • Moved from a DOS based to a Windows based EBC • Implemented a PA specific version of the revised 2003 US Standard Birth Worksheets/Certificate • Moved from a mainframe batch processing system to a PC based system for entire system, including issuance, corrections, amendments, extracts.

4. Describe your reengineering project? • Florida • Implemented client server based system for birth, correspondence accounting , amendments and security modules. • Implemented new NCHS standard birth certificate • Business driven project - not an IT driven project • Business participated in JADS, wrote and tested test scripts for UAT, approved system and re-tested defects through post implementation • Strong communication and coordination between business in Jacksonville and IT team in Tallahassee and vendor in South Carolina • Change control process to manage new requirements and defects • Training and implementation at 67 county health departments

5. What have you seen to be the impact of Reengineering on your back office? • Initial Impact • Transitioning between a weekly batch process and a daily process doubled the workload of staff. • Transitioning from a mainframe to PC increase workload • Data Conversion – Increase workload • Testing the System – Workload • Online amendments – Training, Workload • After implementation – Time savings • SuperMicar • Interstate Exchange • Amendments • Birth • death • Get rid of manual logs for security paper • Vitalchek

6. What Challenges have you faced in preparing staff for a new way of doing business? • Staff Buy-in • Developing a forward thinking program without forward thinkers. • Time to learn a new way of business • Computer Skills – knowing how to use a basic windows environment • Time to support core functions while learning a new way to do business.

7. What have you done to mitigate these challenges? • Regular Meetings with Central Staff. • Developed Step by Step process documents • Developed easy to use manuals • Monthly Newsletters • Providing training away from work environment • Video Training/ Teleconference Training • Include basic computer skills training. • Dig in and help • Put on a happy face. • Develop change management process

8. In what ways has reengineering changed the level of staff or quality of staffing. • Level – Don’t sell reengineering as way to reduce staff. If it happens it is a bonus. • Quality - Move from data entry staff to staff who can do higher level tasks. • Job Classification • Improve the query program • Work on improving timeliness • Conduct chart audits

9. What has the impact of reengineering been on your Statistical Staff? • Change the programs used to analyze data. • Data lacks comparability • Working with whole new file layouts. • Data is more readily available. • More data is available • Combined Birth, Metabolic and Hearing System, Immunization

10. What improvements have you seen in data vs errors that have been introduced. • Edits have improved the quality of data. • Dropdowns have improved the consistency of data. • If error in table, errors are easy to fix. • Online Verification System - SSA • Amendments