Using a Business Case Model to Support Integration of Child Health Information Systems

The Business Case Model (BCM) is a powerful Excel-based tool designed to provide a detailed picture of the specific costs and benefits related to the integration of child health information systems. The BCM was produced by the Public Health Informatics Institute and developed by a health economist at the Lewin Group. The BCM provides a clear business case scenario for public health practitioners. A business case provides practitioners with the information necessary to support a proposal for integrating systems. The BCM is designed to:

• Address the questions that may be asked by funders, decision-makers, and other stakeholders
• Stimulate discussion and generate buy-in based on documented facts and figures
• Make adjustments to a project’s scope or to identify an unfeasible proposal before committing resources to it.

The Business Case Model is preloaded with state-specific data needed to quantify the value of integrating child health information systems such as Vital Records (VR), Immunization, Newborn Dried Bloodspot Screening (NDBS), Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI), lead screening, Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT), and Women Infants and Children (WIC) programs.

The BCM is designed to be flexible enough to reflect the unique characteristics of State child health information systems. The design of the BCM allows flexibility for an advanced user to incorporate factors unique to their state, including design and implementation of the State's child health programs, the characteristics of its population, and the status of integrating child health information systems. The BCM addresses these to answer the question: “What are the financial and business/organizational consequences of integration using different scenarios?”

The Public Health Informatics Institute will present the next web-based training on May 13, 2008.  Training is required for access to the BCM. Use the links below for additional information and background about the Business Case Model (BCM):

• OVERVIEW of the Institute's training on the BCM.
• USER GUIDE for the BCM version 2.0
• TECHNICAL REPORT for the BCM
• REGISTER FOR BCM TRAINING. You must register in order to participate in an online training session on the newest version of the Business Case Model.

The BCM was developed under an agreement with the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau (HRSA/MCHB) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.