Emergency System for Advance Registration of Volunteer Health Professionals (ESAR-VHP) Program Overview and Benefits of Integrating ESAR-VHP and the Medical Reserve Corps 2005 Annual Medical Reserve Corps National Leadership Conference April 21, 2005

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Emergency System for Advance Registration of
Volunteer Health Professionals (ESAR-VHP)
Program Overview and Benefits of Integrating
ESAR-VHP and the Medical Reserve Corps2005
Annual Medical Reserve Corps National
Leadership ConferenceApril 21, 2005
Health Resources and Services Administration Heal
thcare Systems Bureau Division of Healthcare
Preparedness ESAR-VHP Program Marilyn Biviano,
Director, ESAR-VHP
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Presentation Overview

• Background of ESAR-VHP Program and Technical and
  Policy Guidelines Standards and Definitions
  (Guidelines)
• Guidelines how they are being developed, tested
  and implemented
• ESAR-VHP Credentialing Resource Typing
• Benefits of Advance Credentialing
• Benefits of Integrating MRC and ESAR-VHP
• ESAR-VHP Reports, Papers and Tools
• Appendix

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Background of ESAR-VHP Program and Technical and
Policy Guidelines, Standards and Definitions
(Guidelines)
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ESAR-VHP Legislative Mandate

• Public LawPL 107-188, directs the development of
  (State based) Emergency Systems for Advance
  Registration of Volunteer Health Professionals,
  or ESAR-VHP. 1/
• Health and Human Services (HHS) has delegated the
  ESAR-VHP development to the Health Resources
  and Services Administration (HRSA).

1/ Public LawPL 107-188, Public Health Security
and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of
2002, Section 107
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Health care personnel surge capacity is ESSENTIAL!

Physical Surge Capacity (e.g. Hospitals) (NBHPP)
Health Care Personnel Surge Capacity (ESAR-VHP
and MRC)
Health care Preparedness



Training (NBHPP BHPr)
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Building a State-based National System

• State ESAR-VHPs must be built to national
  standards and definitions so that they can be
  shared and utilized across State lines.
• Credentialing (verification of qualifications)
  and DHS National Incident Management System
  (NIMS) Resource Typing is at the core of
  developing a National system.

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Guidelineshow they are being developed, tested
and implemented.
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ESAR-VHP Essential Partners

• FEDERAL PARTNERS
• Medical Reserve
• Corps
• Federal
• CDC
• HHS
• DHS
• FEMA
• USPHS Readiness
• Corps
• Citizen Corps

• PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
  ORGANIZATIONS
• Health Professional Assoc. (AMA, ANA)
• JCAHO
• AHA
• NCSBN
• FSMB
• ABMS
• Red Cross

STATE NBHPP Grantees (62)
STATE ESAR-VHP
HRSA Technical and Policy Guidelines, Definitions
Standards
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The Guidelines cover the entire spectrum of
advance registration, development and operation
features.
Each Issue Topic is supported by a national
working group
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ESAR-VHP Credentialing and Resource Typing

• Credentialing, Privileging and National Incident
  Management System (NIMS) Resource Typing

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Credentialing, Privileging, and NIMS Resource
Typing

• Credentialing is the process of obtaining,
  verifying, and assessing the qualifications of a
  health volunteer.
• Resource Typing Within the ESAR-VHP program,
  resource typing is a uniform process of
  classifying a health care volunteer based on
  verified credentials and consistent with the NIMS
  credentialing system.

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Benefits of Advance Credentialing and Resource
Typing of Emergency Medical Volunteers

• Reduces credentialing burden for emergency care
  delivery, e.g., hospitals.
• Allows scarce specialist resources to be
  allocated according to need (e.g., orthopedic
  surgeon, anesthesiologist, thoracic surgeon).

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Benefits of Advance Credentialing and Resource
Typing Emergency Medical Volunteers, cont.

• Credentials standards and verification and
  resource typing will permit volunteers to be used
  at the highest possible level.
• Building hospital ready volunteer workforce
• Resource typing (based on credentialing
  standards)
• facilitates intra and interstate sharing of
  scarce medical volunteers.

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Benefits of Integrating the MRCs and State
ESAR-VHPs
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Benefits of Integrating MRC and State ESAR-VHP

• Precious health profession volunteer resources
  are maximized and coordinated.
• Integration may reduce MRC operation cost, for
  example, cost of verifying volunteers
  credentials.

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Benefits of Integrating MRC and State ESAR-VHP,
cont.

• MRC volunteer may be eligible (through ESAR-VHP)
  for benefits under state declared emergency
  authorities
• malpractice liability protection
• workmens compensation

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Benefits of Integrating MRC and State ESAR-VHP,
cont.

• Integration provides for a seamless linking of
• State and local medical volunteer
• emergency response efforts that will
• Reduce emergency response time,
• Increase capability to respond to bigger
  emergencies within a state, and
• Enable interstate responsesEMAC is a
  state-to-state response.

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ESAR-VHP Reports, Papers, and Tools
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ESAR-VHP Reports, Papers, and Tools

• Interim Technical and Policy Guidelines,
  Standards, and DefinitionsA Handbook that
  provides a set of recommendations and approaches
  for developing, implementing, and maintaining an
  ESAR-VHP system. (Available Soon)
• Legal and Regulatory IssuesExamines and
  summarizes areas of law relevant to ESAR-VHP,
  such as emergency declarations, licensing,
  credentialing, liability and workmens
  compensation issues.

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ESAR-VHP Reports, cont

• Hospital Implementation Issues and Solutions
  Focus Group Meeting ReportIdentifies and assess
  hospital issues as they relate to the development
  and implementation of an ESAR-VHP system.
• Will the States ESAR-VHP Build Adequate Hospital
  Personnel Surge CapacityA White Paper that
  discusses the options for credential verification
  of health professionals and the implications of
  not meeting hospital level verification standards.

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ESAR-VHP Reports, cont

• ESAR-VHP Legal and Regulatory Issues Draft
  Toolkit Provides information, contacts, and
  resources to help you assess of many of the legal
  issues that may arise during implementation of
  your States ESAR-VHP system. Includes, among
  other items, a checklist and model documents.

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MRC Credentialing Portal Pilot

• Easy to use registration tool will allow MRCs to
  collect the information needed to verify
  credentials and assign resource types to
  volunteers.

http//www.esarvhp.com/mrc/
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MRC Credentialing Portal Pilot

• Please visit the ESAR-VHP MRC Project Table to
  learn more about
• ESAR-VHP MRC integration plans
• MRC Credentialing Portal Project
• ESAR-VHP will also be discussed in the following
  presentations later today
• Integrating MRC and ESAR-VHP across Minnesota
• Database and Reporting Options for Local MRCs,
  Jeff Reilly, Westchester County MRC

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Additional Information

• Marilyn Biviano, Director ESAR-VHP
• HSB, Division of Healthcare Preparedness
• Room 13C-105
• 5600 Fishers Lane
• Rockville, MD 20857
• Email mbiviano_at_hrsa.gov

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APPENDIX
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Credentialing and Resource Typing High Priority
Occupations
Bold
Draft Resource Typing Completed
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Timeline for State-Based ESAR-VHP2004-2006
Develop Guidelines and common definitions and
assess hospital, liability, and other key
implementation issues.
NBHPP FY04 Supplement to 30 States to pilot
guidelines and develop systems Remaining NBHPP
awardees supplemental approved but unfunded
Complete Interim Guidelines, issue analysis
best practices
2nd ESAR-VHP Focus Group Meeting
Develop baseline number of ESAR-VHP providers
(update annually)
ESAR-VHP Focus group meeting
May 2004
Nov. 2004
Jan. 2005
Sept. 2004

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Timeline for State-Based ESAR-VHP 2004-2006,
contd
Provide technical assistance to 20 States.
Conduct regional focus and technical assistance
meetings and refine Guidelines
Pilot test Guidelines in 10 States and refine
Guidelines
ESAR-VHP Focus Group Meeting
NBHPP FY 05 Award to 32 States to develop systems.
30 (Total) ESAR-VHPs initiated. Guidelines
revised.
10 ESAR-VHP systems initiated
Jan. 2005
Sept. 2005
July 2005
Dec. 2005
June 2005
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Timeline for State-Based ESAR-VHP 2004-2006,
contd
Provide technical assistance to remaining (32)
States and jurisdictions in development of their
ESAR-VHP. Conduct regional focus and technical
assistance meetings and refine Guidelines
.
Dec. 2006
Jan. 2006
June 2006
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Phases of ESAR-VHP Development and Technical
Assistance
HI
AK
WA
NH
VT
MT
ME
ND
MN
OR
ID
MA
SD
WI
NY
MI
RI
WY
CT
PA
IO
NJ
NE
NV
DE
OH
IN
IL
UT
MD
CA
CO
WV
VA
DC
KS
MO
KY
NC
TN
OK
AZ
NM
AR
SC
GA
AL
MS
TX
LA
PHASE I
FL
PHASE II
PHASE III
PR - (Puerto Rico) VI - (U.S. Virgin Islands)
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Credentialing, Privileging, and NIMS Resource
Typing of Physicians
Initial Guidelines focus on credentialing
requirements for physicians, registered nurses,
and behavioral health professionals 1/. We will
expeditiously add additional professions.
1/ Psychologists, medical and public health
social workers, mental and substance abuse social
workers, marriage and family therapists and
clinical mental health counselors.