|
History of the Oregon POLST Registry
The Registry project began under the leadership of Terri Schmidt, M.D. in January 2008 in response to a need expressed by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) to access POLST orders when they arrived on the scene of a medical emergency, and could not immediately locate the POLST form. The development of the test and pilot systems were funded by a grant from the Greenwall Foundation along with additional private philanthropy. The project is a collaboration of the Oregon POLST Task Force, the OHSU Center for Ethics in Health Care and the OHSU Department of Emergency Medicine. Phase one of the project consisted of designing the electronic Registry and was completed in December 2008. In January 2009, the second phase began, with system training and testing of the Registry by the project team, the OHSU Emergency Communications Center and EMS professionals in Clackamas County. May 2009 marked the roll out of the third phase or “pilot” of the Oregon POLST Registry with initiation in Clackamas County on May 26, 2009. Legislation was introduced in Senate Bill 329 to partner the Registry with the Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Oregon Health Authority (OHA). The partnership addressed HIPAA requirements and secured support for statewide expansion. Legislation passed on July 1, 2009 and the Registry office began accepting forms from across Oregon (Oregon Administrative Rules Chapter 333, Division 270). Senate Bill 329 also established a POLST Registry Advisory Committee (PRAC). The Committee advises the OHA regarding implementation, evaluation, and operation of the Registry. On December 3, 2009 the Registry was implemented statewide.
|