Health Center Controlled Network

The Louisiana Health Center Controlled Network (HCCN) is a HRSA-funded initiative focused on quality improvement in health care through the adoption of health information technology (HIT). The focus of the network is to support health centers in leveraging health information technology and data to deliver high-quality, culturally competent, equitable, and comprehensive primary health care, with a specific focus on improvements in:

Clinical Quality,
Patient-Centered care, and
Provider and staff well-being

The Louisiana HCCN is administered by the Louisiana Primary Care Association. The LPCA was awarded an HRSA grant in late 2012 and started with 18 FQHCs across Louisiana, focusing on diabetes and cardiovascular disease. For the current project cycle, 2022-2025, the network has grown to a strong total of 33 participating health centers with a focus on leveraging health IT to improve access to care, enhance the quality of care, and achieve cost efficiencies through the redesign of practices to integrate services and optimize patient outcomes.

This project will focus on providing training and technical assistance (T/TA) opportunities to Participating Health Centers (PHCs) to meet HRSA-set core objectives in 10 areas:

HCCN PHC Member Survey Results:

The Network Offers:

Direct one-on-one technical assistance
Two in-person learning sessions per year
Topical technical assistance webinars
Peer-to-peer learning and exchange
Patient portal trainings
Remote patient monitoring opportunities
Security audit assessments with breach mitigation and response planning
Telehealth service advancements

Examples of Technical Assistance Include:

EHR reporting and documentation to facilitate electronic UDS Reporting and user group webinars
EHR optimization to assure data is captured in structured fields
In-depth analysis of the annual HRSA Quality Improvement Awards - complete with individual health center reports
HIPPA and Risk Management Training
HIT security webinar series
Data connectivity to other population-based programs/entities
PRAPARE webinars for implementation at health centers
Quality improvement and management best practices and tools

Successes Reported by HCCN Members:

LA HCCN (49.4%) surpasses the national average (42.8%) for childhood immunizations
LA HCCN membership more than doubled over the past 6 years
In house data analytics expertise to assist with data analysis to help with grant opportunities
(2) Certified NCQA experts in-house
Successful implementation of the Azara DRVS tool in over 20 participating health centers
Supporting financially (and with in-house expertise) the implementation of several add-on DRVS modules, including: Referral Module, FOT/FIT Module, Controlled Substance Module