This manual was created to help pediatric practices redesign their office systems to improve the quality of preventive and developmental services they provide to young children. The resources—which include checklists, surveys, bibliographies, and more—in The Guide were developed and tested in the Healthy Development Learning Collaborative, a year-long quality improvement initiative in which primary care practices in Vermont and North Carolina used improved office systems to engage families in efforts to promote positive developmental outcomes.
Organizations: 19 primary care practices in Vermont and North Carolina; Vermont Child Health Improvement Program, Vermont Department of Health, Cincinnati Children's Center for Health Care Quality, University of North Carolina, and North Carolina Division of Medical Assistance
Target Populations: Primary pediatric practices
The Intervention: The Guide offers step-by-step guidance on how to revise office systems and implement strategies to help pediatric practices follow the recommendations of Bright Futures, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and other experts. Based on the experience of 19 practices, The Guide offers a number of newly tested and established resources to help improve the quality of preventive care provided to young children. The materials in The Guide are organized as modules that can be used individually or together. The modules are:
- Module 1: Assessing Your Practice's Office Systems
- Module 2: Developmental Screening and Surveillance
- Module 3: Family Psychosocial Screening and Surveillance
- Module 4: Eliciting Parents' Concerns
- Module 5: Anticipatory Guidance
- Module 6: Linking with Your Community
The modules offer improvement checklists, guidance on using the tools, parental education strategies, and advice on linking with community resources. The guide also includes comments from health care providers—in large and small practices and urban and rural settings—who have successfully integrated these resources into their practices.
For Further Information: Contact Kim Paul at the The Vermont Child Health Improvement Program, 802-847-4220, www.vchip.org; Sandy Fuller at the Center for Health Care Quality at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, www.cincinnatichildrens.org