 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Laura Hardcastle, BA and Sakchai Himathongkham, PhD. Refugee Health Section, California Department of Health Services, 601 N. 7th Street, MS 508, PO Box 942732, MS 508, Sacramento, CA 94234-7320, Sacramento, CA 94234-7320, 916-323-1164, lhardcas@dhs.ca.gov
Since the California Department of Health Services/Refugee Health Section (CDHS/RHS) first reported on the development of the Refugee Health Electronic Infor-mation System (RHEIS), one of the most comprehensive, and uniform data systems available on refugees, several enhancements have been made and activated this year.
It is estimated that one in every 38 Californians (approximately 1,000,000 individuals) is a refugee, making California the largest recipient of refugees entering the United States. Health information collected through RHEIS indicated that over 71% of arriving refugees were assessed with one or more health conditions. The collection of arrival and demo-graphic data on primary and secondary migrants, parolees and victims of trafficking by country of origin, gender, and age is a function of RHEIS. It is also utilized to measure program performance against established program objectives. RHEIS provides real-time information to CDHS/RHS, local health jurisdictions (LHJs) and voluntary agencies (VOLAGS). This presentation will demonstrate how RHEIS data can provide reports on such things as chronic disease prevalence (showing variation by country of origin, race and ethnicity), and immunization status. We will also present other data on such topics as health education and lifestyle.
The CDHS/RHS is in the process of making the information available to LHJs and VOLAGS via the CDHS/RHS webpage for real-time usage. The data is being used for tracking, reporting, program planning, policy development, program performance and program management purposes. RHEIS will soon eliminate manual reports that LHJs have been submitting to CDHS/RHS.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Health Assessment, Refugees
Related Web page: www.dhs.ca.gov/ps/dcdc/RefugeeHealth/index.htm
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: California Department of Health Services/Refugee Health Section
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.