Data Storyteller

As of CDC's 2017 National Diabetes Statistics Report, 30.3 million people, or 9.4% of the total U.S. population, have diabetes. Of these 30.3 million, only 23.1 million are diagnosed—while the other estimated 7.2 million are undiagnosed. Additionally, more than 1 in 3 adults or 84.1 million people in the U.S. have prediabetes, including nearly half of people age 65 and older. According to 2018 UDS data, an estimated 15.1% of Federally Qualified Health Center patients nationwide have diabetes, an increase over recent years. Of these approx. 2.4 million plus patients living with diabetes, approximately 33% have uncontrolled diabetes, with HbA1c equal to or above 9% or have had no test in the year. This has remained relatively stable since 2016. These statistics bring forth the need for improvement in the care of diabetes; several resources and research outcomes are profiled here with specific takeaways for health centers.

This toolkit from the National Rural Health Resource Center is organized into four steps to guide rural hospitals and clinics in developing and fostering a well-rounded cybersecurity program, including awareness, assessment, implementation & remediation, and education. A survey of available resources from various governmental and non-profit organizations is also included, as are checklists and tools that are appropriate for all audiences, including hospitals and clinics in rural settings.

An introduction to creating an EHR RFP using the MEHI EHR Planning and Procurement Toolkit.

These webinars provide more in-depth information on how PRAPARE has been used on-the-ground and the technical specifications for the four Electronic Health Record PRAPARE templates (available for eClinicalWorks, Epic, GE Centricity, and NextGen). 

The Protocol for Responding to and Assessing Patients’ Assets, Risks, and Experiences (PRAPARE) is a national effort to help health centers and other providers collect the data needed to better understand and act on their patients’ social determinants of health. As providers are increasingly held accountable for reaching population health goals while reducing costs, it is important that they have tools and strategies to identify the upstream socioeconomic drivers of poor outcomes and higher costs. With data on the social determinants of health, health centers and other providers can define and document the increased complexity of their patients, transform care with integrated services and community partnerships to meet the needs of their patients, advocate for change in their communities, and demonstrate the value they bring to patients, communities, and payers.