Greetings, DBHDD supporters!  September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and this is an especially important issue to discuss right now.  In fact, talking about suicide out loud—regularly, repeatedly, and thoughtfully—is part of the solution.  I’ll say more about what YOU can do regardless of your age, skill level or background.  But first, let’s remember what we ALL can do, and that is to offer a message of hope.  Each life matters, and we know that help is available.  We also know that treatment for issues related to mental health and addiction can save lives.  Hope comes in the form of the Georgia Crisis and Access Line (GCAL).  In every way possible, please share the number: 1-800-715-4225 to increase awareness of the support that is available 24/7 statewide.

Now let’s talk about what DBHDD is doing in response to the fact that suicide rates have increased at a disturbing rate across the country.  Suicide is the second leading cause of death among individuals between ages of 10 and 34.  Our alarm and concern must be grounded in an evidence-based, multi-tiered approach that reaches individuals, families, caregivers and communities, and uses public policy, education, prevention and intervention strategies, and community planning to confront this problem.  Using research data to drive priority target populations and geographic areas, we facilitate suicide prevention coalitions that work with faith, business, and civic leaders alongside community service boards and other local providers to disseminate education and training and to promote access to GCAL and community-based services.  If the tragedy of suicide occurs, our partners work to mitigate the risk of contagion by providing grief support, making physical contact for emotional respite, and most importantly, helping reduce the stigma of mourning the loss of a loved one by suicide.

Through a network of suicide prevention experts, DBHDD supports training and technical assistance to grow professional and organizational capacity building, so that providers can offer 21st century suicide prevention support; address the most complex cases of mental health and substance abuse disorders; and ensure that more Georgians who are at-risk for suicide behaviors are screened and connected to care.  

So far in 2018, through our collective internal and partner efforts, approximately 600 providers and community members have been trained in two proven gatekeeper suicide trainings: Question, Persuade, and Refer (QPR) and Mental Health First Aid (MHFA).  Additionally, DBHDD supports evidence-based and best practices to target suicide screening and interventions for vulnerable individuals, such as youth and young adults; people with specific mental health diagnoses, substance use disorder history, chronic health conditions; and those with prior documented attempts.  A focused statewide effort includes collaborating on multiple levels in all six regions of the state, working with community service boards, the Georgia Department of Education, colleges/universities, civic organizations, law enforcement, public and private clinicians, community groups, suicide survivors, and many, many other stakeholders.

It’s important to understand that when it comes to suicide prevention – there is something YOU can do.  If you are concerned about someone who may be considering suicide, remember these four action steps: ASK-LISTEN-STAY-HELP.

Ask openly and compassionately, ‘Are you thinking about suicide?’  Listen to the person without judgment; avoid trying to ‘fix it.’  Stay with the person if he or she is suicidal; keep him or her safe until help arrives.  Help him or her find the right kind of help.  Call the Georgia Crisis Access Line (GCAL) anytime at 1-800-715-4225.  Together, we have the power to decrease the prevalence of suicide and reduce its devastating impact on families and communities in Georgia.

By now, you’ve probably heard me talking about our remarkable transformation story.  You’ve heard me brag on our talented and dedicated team at 2 Peachtree, in our regional field offices, and our state hospitals, as well as in our network of community-based providers.  If you were part of our system in 2009, you remember that Georgia’s public safety net was inconsistent, fragmented, underfunded, outdated, over-reliant on hospitals, and lacking capacity to serve people in the community.  In a word, it was broken. 
 
Today, after a decade of transformation, DBHDD is a consumer-focused, innovative, and responsive leader in behavioral health and intellectual and developmental disabilities, both in Georgia and across the nation.  In my May column, I highlighted many changes to our community service delivery system, managed by our Divisions of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. Today, I want to talk about a less visible but no less significant piece of our transformation: our information technology system. 
 
The health care environment of the future demands modern technology and a nimble workforce that can adopt new and evolving digital skills.  Under the leadership of our Chief Information Officer Doug Engle, DBHDD has embraced a state-of-the-art approach to information technology.  DBHDD’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) supports our 5,000 employees working in the state office, our six regional field offices, and our five hospitals.  While you may not think about IT unless you have a problem with your computer, their work undergirds everything that we do.  
 
In the last five years, our IT system has profoundly transformed.  IT improvements are not just about new software for staff.  They are directly leading to efficiencies and better care for the people we serve.  You don’t need a technology background to understand how DBHDD’s many IT advancements are making it easier for us to do our jobs and to support easy access to high-quality care for everyone who is touched by our department. 
 
Below are just a few of the advancements that are in progress or will be launched soon.

Security

• An enhanced cybersecurity policy protects the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of our systems, networks and data, and helps staff recover their business processes after computer or network security incidents.New cyber incident response teams provide a quick, effective, and orderly response to computer-related incidents, such as viruses, hackers, or the improper disclosure of confidential information.

Provider Data

• The Office of Provider Certification and Service Integrity under the Division of Accountability and Compliance now uses an integrated platform for collecting, tracking, and reporting provider assessments, as well as resolving any issues identified in the assessments. This platform makes the provider review process more efficient by automating reporting and consolidating data.  It significantly reduces the amount of time spent on almost every step in the process.  It also provides easy access to reports and analytics, helping us meet our goal of ensuring high-quality care across our entire provider network. 

Clinical Oversight for High-Risk Individuals

• The Office of Health and Wellness’ Statewide Clinical Oversight Application is a web-based tool used to document and track events/incidents for high-risk individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) receiving Waiver services.  It supports the timely, systematic, and comprehensive attention necessary to adequately resolve or address identified events/incidents with the goal of reducing morbidity and mortality risks.  The tool enables:
  • Increased visibility and accountability on all oversight processes statewide;
  • Improved collaboration and communication among; and
  • Data-driven decision making through centralized and standardized data collection.

IDD Service Review Technical Application (SRTA)

• The SRTA applications helps 30 evaluators track more than 200 health, wellness, and safety data elements of more than 400 high-risk individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities who have been transferred from our hospitals to a community residential setting.

Forensic Evaluation Logistix

• The Office of Forensic Services has been working closely with OIT to develop a new web-based tool to document and manage court-ordered competency evaluations and the assignment of the evaluations. The Forensic Evaluation Logistix (FELIX) application will facilitate collaborative and timely management of competency evaluations.  This is being achieved through increased visibility of all court-ordered competency evaluations and annual evaluations within a single application.  Through the consolidation of forensic evaluation data collection, there will be improved dashboards, reporting, and oversight.   In return, the Office of Forensic Services will have an application that enables data-driven decision making and accountability.  The FELIX application is planned to be released this month.

Customer Service

• The new work request management tool uses a ticketing system to track and monitor computer- and technology-related issues for employees, so that they can be resolved in an organized and timely manner. It also provides metrics to allow OIT to see where and how frequently various issues occur.  DBHDD staff can submit work requests through the OIT homepage in SharePoint.  
• OIT developed an application to identify and track DBHDD hardware assets and locate them quickly if lost or stolen. This helps ensure that protected health information and other confidential material is secure.  The application also enables more efficient updates.  The use of this application has reduced monthly billing costs by $10,000, and led to a 17 percent decrease in assets not in use and a 65 percent decrease in reserve assets.

While the benefits of DBHDD’s IT enhancements are felt across our department, many efforts been targeted around helping our hospitals improve patient care. 

Infrastructure

• A new fiber network and other enhancements, including the addition of campus-wide wireless Internet, have been piloted at Georgia Regional Hospital-Atlanta with future expansion planned for other hospitals.
• OIT continues to work with our business partners to provide refreshed and up-to-date laptops, tablets, and desktop computers across our agency.

Application Development and Support

• OIT has developed, and continues to develop or enhance, several hospital-based applications, including Avatar, our electronic health records system.  Future Avatar modules will be able to quickly and securely exchange referrals with external provider organizations; send and receive clinical data, lab results, and treatment plans; and incorporate external data directly into individuals’ medical charts.

Patient Care Enablement Project

• This initiative improves care by fostering an environment in which staff are informed, connected, and accountable by creating standardized workflows and training modules; communication and on-the-job skill development; and the ability to measure the adoption rate of these new features by staff.   

Hospital and Enterprise Reporting

• An enhanced data reporting system provides reliable reports via a simple tool that allows fast and easy access to information, as well as the ability to monitor individuals (including those at high risk), pinpoint data input and timeliness issues, and collect relevant information for decision making. The system also standardizes required data collection across our hospitals.

I am so proud of our OIT staff and the many technological enhancements they have brought across our system.  While these efforts certainly make it easier for staff to accomplish daily work, the real impact is on our ability to provide more efficient and responsive care to the people we serve.