Integrating quality assurance in the operation of immunization registries

Immunization registry systems play a vital role in increasing Immunization rates of children. Reaching the national goal of immunizing 90% of all children before they reach age 2 is our focus. Mississippi has created a computerized immunization registry to track the immunization status of its children. Immunization information for children aged 0-24 months is entered statewide. Data base integrity is a concern. Problems were identified after conducting routine immunization clinic assessments and during the extraction of data from the system. One quality assurance measure recently implemented was a quarterly audit of the immunization data base to ascertain the problems associated with the data and identify clinics with high error rates. The audit will compare the data on the handwritten clinic records with the information entered into the registry. Another measure implemented was the computer-generated exception report. With this report, analysts programmed the system to address specific data elements. The staff accessed the data in the registry data base and matched this file against other files. That providers buy into the concept of quality control and realize the importance of a registry data base that has accurate and verifiable immunization data is important. Additionally, providing the appropriate training tools for employees and newly hired personnel should be a primary focus toward ensuring quality. Data base audits and data base exception reports are excellent quality assurance tools; however, a comprehensive quality assurance plan must be developed and implemented to ensure immunization registry data integrity.