The Challenge 

When Waring School mailed required student health forms to parents each summer, those forms were returned to the school via traditional mail. Nurse Jan Lindsay then spent the two weeks prior to the start of school organizing piles of paperwork, making a list of those students with missing forms, and then contacting those students’ parents. “It involved a lot of chasing down families via email. As the beginning of school approached, we then went to the phones,” Lindsay said. Even with those efforts, there were some parents who waited until the very last day, when Waring School left for their annual camping trip in New Hampshire. “That was the worst — dealing with forms and medication instructions as we were trying to load up the vans and get ourselves to camp,” Lindsay said. 

Lindsay dealt with these issues each year, and frequently the receptionist would assist in making phone calls as well, making it difficult to tally just how much time the cumbersome process consumed. In addition, updates to student health files were rarely made until the following fall, when new physicals would come to the health office and the process would start anew. 

“The Magnus Health system is always improving… It has streamlined the process and enables me to access from anywhere there is internet. ” 

– Jan Lindsay, Nurse

The Solution 

In choosing Magnus, Lindsay noted, “the biggest factor was that Magnus Health is set to remind parents of what they owe.” Now in the second year with Magnus Health, Lindsay utilized the Client Services team, stating, “I clung to Aketa like she was a life raft. That made a huge difference in my comfort level contacting Magnus Health with questions. She was a huge help to me, and was both helpful and patient.” 

Since Waring School implemented SHR in May of 2011, the system has continued to evolve. “The Magnus Health system is always improving. It has provided a level of empowerment both for us receiving the information as well as for the parents who can successfully access and alter their files. It has streamlined the process and enables me to access from anywhere there is internet,” Lindsay said. 

The Result 

Implementation and the first year using SHR were not all rainbows and sunshine for Waring School. Initial start-up was a struggle for some parents, and there were learning curves to be sure. However, between the constantly improving SHR features, parents becoming familiar with the evolving process, and the power of scanning as opposed to faxing (most parents find scanning to be easier), things are much improved. “It went 90 percent more smoothly,” Lindsay said of the second year using SHR. 

A streamlined SHR process makes the difference at Waring School. “The very small percentage of non-compliant parents will always be there, but it is so much easier now,” Lindsay said, adding, “Now I spend a little time each day looking over the new arrivals. The filing is done immediately, and I can do it from [off campus],” Lindsay noted. Remote access also means Lindsay has the ability to access a student’s file from the field using a smart phone, an added benefit over previous health information management methods. And, emergency preparedness is improved through Magnus911, which Waring School coaches and faculty can easily use from any device with Internet access. 

“Certainly time and money are both being saved. However, it is the ease of use for parents, nurses, and the fact that it is HIPAA protected that I love the most.”  

– Cheryl Tardif, Student Health Center Director 

Summary 

Waring School experienced the challenges of a manual system, struggled to get updates to student files, and had to make phone calls to collect missing information. Then they found a solution in Magnus Health SHR, and now they are enjoying the ability to closely track compliance, employ automated reminders to parents, and utilize the emergency module, all from on or off campus. And best of all, the streamlined process empowers both Waring School and the parents of their students to access, edit, and manage student health information at any time, from anywhere.