Health IT innovator OZ Systems has completed implementation of a fully integrated and interoperable newborn screening health IT platform for the Mission Regional Medical Center (MRMC).
Mission Regional Medical Center is the first hospital in the Rio Grande Valley and an early adopter in Texas to utilize OZ Systems’ end-to-end newborn screening information system. This system, OZ STAR™, solves the interoperability challenge of connecting hospitals with public health departments, while ensuring complete newborn screening care and real-time "GPS-like" tracking of data.
"It was challenging work to be manually entering all newborn screening information and providing it to the Texas Department of State Health Service," said Sheena Kaukel Garza, Director, Women’s Health Services, Mission Regional Medical Center. "Now it is all automated with OZ STAR™. We bundle the newborn health screening information for congenital heart defects, hearing, and the metabolic screenings and the system automatically sends it to the state. It’s a much faster and more streamlined process," added Garza.
Timeliness of newborn screening, interoperable data exchange and follow up have become top targets of both hospitals and public health agencies. OZ STAR™ is a first of its kind integrated platform for newborn nurseries, improving staff workflow, quality of care, patient safety and overall timeliness of newborn screening.
Comprised of OZ NANI™ (Newborn Admission Notification Information), OZ Telepathy™ for CCHD (Critical Congenital Heart Disease) and OZ Telepathy™ for NBS (Newborn Bloodspot Screening), the system merges all lab-based and point-of-care newborn screening with a baby’s newborn admission record, all during the most critical window of time for newborns — the first 48 hours of life.
The 300-bed MRMC delivers more than 2,000 babies a year, is accredited by the Joint Commission and has been the recipient of both the Labor and Delivery Excellence Award and the Obstetrics and Gynecology Excellence Award.
"Using OZ STAR™, Mission Regional Medical Center will immediately improve the accuracy and timeliness of newborn bloodspot screening information being sent to the state public health lab, a step that can literally save lives," said Dr. Terese Finitzo, CEO of OZ Systems. "Lack of integration and interoperability are pain points for nearly every hospital nursery, including neonatal intensive care units. It is a privilege to partner with a hospital delivering so many south Texas babies and helping them elevate the level of care for newborns while simplifying the work of those who care for them."
OZ STAR™ is an important compliance tool but beyond that it is valuable to hospitals in two ways. First, the system brings all of a baby’s necessary information including screening results into one manageable hub to assure complete, accurate and timely screening care.
Second, hospitals have a simple, reusable tool that can transmit required data to the state — meeting key newborn screening quality indicators and opening up vital communications between providers and public health.
OZ STAR™ is being adopted by a growing number of hospitals in Texas and nationwide as a tool that improves newborn care, workflow and interoperability of information, including results between the hospital and state public health programs — an essential component of care and follow-up services for practitioners, affected babies and families.