Records Management ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report (September 2022)

Summary

The Records Management ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report for September 2022 from the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), dated 9/30/2022. It says VDH seeks to digitize paper records and automate paper-based records management processes. The progress section for July through September 2022 describes work with the Office of Drinking Water, the Office of Licensure and Certification and the Office of Vital Records, and states that VDH issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a scanning vendor. The project budget table lists a total appropriation of $30,000,000, obligations to date of $3,202,000 and expenditures to date of $1,308,000.

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                     RECORDS MANAGEMENT
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF)




                                9/30/2022
Records Management
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
September 2022
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Table of Contents
Report Mandate ............................................................................................................................................ 3
Context for ARPA Initiatives .......................................................................................................................... 3
Executive Summary....................................................................................................................................... 3
Overview of Quarterly Progress (July – September 2022)............................................................................ 4
Risks and Risk Management ......................................................................................................................... 6
Change Management Considerations........................................................................................................... 6
Project Budget .............................................................................................................................................. 7
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ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
September 2022
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Report Mandate
Chapter 1 Enactment Clause 1, paragraph B.2.P.9., of the amended 2021 Acts of Assembly states, “The
department shall communicate a detailed plan and implementation schedule to the Governor, the Chairs
of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance and Appropriations Committees, and the Director of the
Department of Planning and Budget by September 30, 2021. Additionally, the department shall report
quarterly to the Governor, the Chairs of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance and Appropriations
Committees, and the Director of the Department of Planning and Budget on progress made, with the first
progress report to be delivered not later than December 31, 2021.”

Context for ARPA Initiatives
The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) is excited about the opportunity presented by the appropriation
of ARPA State Fiscal Funds in the August 2021 Special Session II of the General Assembly to improve public
health in Virginia. VDH views this investment as a once in a generation opportunity and VDH will work
tirelessly to maximize use of funds to create and sustain these initiatives. Simultaneously, VDH is fully
engaged in responding to COVID-19 and protecting the health of Virginians. Modifications to VDH’s plans
will be reflected in future quarterly reports.

Executive Summary
The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) seeks to digitize paper records and automate current paper-
based records management processes to make information across all offices more accessible and
interoperable. The existing paper-based processes make it challenging to react and respond to requests,
which greatly increased throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. These inefficiencies result in time-
consuming manual searches for records and could cause delays in processing. The physical space needed
to house the records is significant and growing, which requires resources and consumes valuable space.
Digitizing and automating outdated paper-based processes will enable employees to work more
effectively and efficiently, and better serve Virginians. Since many records are currently only maintained
in paper form, there is no contingency plan should the records be lost or damaged by fire, flood, or other
natural disaster.

Over the last three months, VDH has made significant progress across the three pilot Records
Management Offices – Office of Drinking Water (ODW), Office of Licensure & Certification (OLC), and
Office of Vital Records (OVR). The scanning vendor for ODW began scanning records within the Richmond
Field Office. These records will be uploaded to a SharePoint digital storage solution that is customized to
meet the office’s unique records management needs. Purging and document preparation continue across
the remaining ODW Field Offices.

VDH issued an RFP for a scanning vendor for OLC and OVR and is working to finalize the list of file types
for digitization across the offices in preparation for when vendors are chosen. VDH also issued an agency-
wide records assessment survey and launched a Purging Communications Campaign to prepare other VDH
Central Offices for eventual digitization.

In the next quarter, VDH will initiate preparation activities within the remaining ODW Field Offices,
procure a scanning vendor for OVR and OLC, and prepare offices for digitization and digital storage. This
will also include an effort to develop processes and policies for the pilot offices to maintain digital
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ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
September 2022
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recordkeeping and prevent the future buildup of paper once records have been digitized. The agency will
continue encouraging records purging across all remaining VDH Central Offices and sequence the next
phase of offices for digitization. These accomplishments have set the Records Management Initiative on
the path to successfully digitize VDH’s paper records within the ARPA SLFRF funding window.

Objective(s)

VDH aims to digitize existing paper records, destroy unnecessary paper records, and streamline paper-
based records management processes to:
   ●   Allow for easier and more efficient access to data across the organization and to customers
   ●   Allow for integration and interoperability of data across central offices and local health districts
       (LHD)
   ●   Eliminate the time and effort associated with retrieving paper documents in multiple locations
   ●   Free physical storage space across VDH facilities by digitizing or destroying paper records and
       removing the file storage containers

Overview of Quarterly Progress (July – September 2022)
Since reporting on updated activities in June 2022, VDH has continued to advance the Records
Management Initiative by planning an efficient and effective approach to digitize files in the coming
quarter. The following key activities have been accomplished since July 2022:

Key Activities and Accomplishments

   •   Office of Drinking Water (ODW)
           o Worked with VDH ODW and Office of Information Management (OIM) to develop
               requirements for an ODW digital storage solution (SharePoint site) that will house
               scanned records; began development of the site
           o   Developed end-to-end process flow to map steps and respective owners for the transfer
               of digital files for quality review folders (10% sample) and to their final SharePoint folders
           o   Identified requirements for an automated file transfer solution within SharePoint that will
               facilitate more timely and effective transfer of scanned records; began development of
               tool
           o   Hired contractors across ODW Richmond and Culpeper field offices to provide support
               with document preparation for scanning
           o   Began scanning at ODW Richmond Field Office and conducted site visit to ODW Culpeper
               to prepare leadership and staff for document preparation activities

   •   Office of Licensure and Certification (OLC)
           o Continued to develop OLC file catalog to map the office’s record types and determine
               scanning sequence / ideal digital storage location

           o   Hired contractor to provide OLC with records purging support
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ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
September 2022
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   •   Office of Vital Records (OVR)
           o Conducted several meetings with OVR staff to align on list of file types for digitization

           o   Continued to develop approach to the digitization of sealed certificates and transfer of
               already scanned records at OVR to new digital storage solution

   •   Overall Records Management
          o Issued Request for Proposal (RFP) for scanning vendor for offices that cannot use Virginia
               Correctional Enterprises scanning services

           o   Developed Records Management end-to-end digitization process that includes all steps
               from records purging to scanning to uploading scanned images in digital storage

           o   Launched agency-wide Paper Records Assessment Survey to gather information from
               VDH Central Offices on their current paper volume, use of digital storage, and
               availability/willingness to begin scanning

           o   Launched agency-wide Records Purging Communications Campaign to encourage VDH
               Central Offices to begin purging and prepare for digitization; developed VDH Records
               Destruction Form for offices to report purging progress

           o   Developed one-pager for VDH Local Health District (LHD) Site Assessment Team to use in
               communicating with LHDs about the Records Management initiative

Anticipated Next Quarter Activities (October – December 2022)

The following outlines the activities and tasks planned from October through December 2022:

   •   Select (via RFP process) and onboard vendor for purging, document preparation, and/or scanning
       support to offices that cannot use Virginia Correctional Enterprises scanning services

   •   Finalize list of OLC and OVR file types for digitization; begin preparing offices for scanning and
       develop digital storage solutions

   •   Finalize ODW Implementation Plan to guide the office through remaining digitization activities;
       develop ODW Operational Plan to guide the office in long-term digital recordkeeping practices

   •   Continue records scanning within ODW Richmond and Culpeper Field Offices; finalize scope and
       begin digitization within remaining ODW Field Offices

   •   Finalize ODW SharePoint site and automated file transfer solution to be used throughout the
       digitization process

   •   Develop and distribute SharePoint training materials for ODW leadership and staff

   •   Develop Lessons Learned document from ODW Richmond Field Office experience to inform
       digitization at remaining ODW Field Offices
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ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
September 2022
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    •   Develop strategy and timeline for engaging with other VDH Central Offices and LHDs in 2023,
        including sequencing of offices for digitization

    •   Continue Records Purging Communications Campaign to encourage VDH Central Offices to purge
        paper records; regularly review submissions to VDH Records Destruction Form to monitor agency-
        wide purging progress, identify gaps, and recognize high-performing offices

Risks and Risk Management
    ●   Risk 1: If VDH does not have sufficient resources for document preparation, then the timeline for
        scanning and overall digitization will be delayed

            o   Mitigation Strategy: Begin ongoing hiring of document prep contractors, recruit among
                LHD COVID contractors, and explore possibility of outsourcing document prep to vendor
                through VDH Quick Quotes.

    ●   Risk 2: If the selection of additional scanning vendor(s) is delayed, then the digitization effort for
        the remaining pilot offices will also be delayed

            o   Mitigation Strategy: RFP released to secure a vendor; VDH prioritizing scanning vendor
                selection by mid-October.

    ●   Risk 3: If the volume of records for quality review exceeds team capacity, then the quality review
        process will be delayed

            o   Mitigation Strategy: Develop quality review process and estimate of staff time that will
                be required; explore the possibility of outsourcing quality review to vendor.

Change Management Considerations
VDH understands that successful transformation initiatives rely on more than just the right technology,
processes, and resources. They also depend on effective change management, engagement, and training
strategies to equip stakeholders with the information and guidance that they need to support the change.
A robust change management effort is essential to the success of the Records Management initiative,
which represents a significant organizational transformation that will impact and rely on a wide variety of
stakeholders.

A key objective of VDH’s Organizational Change Management (OCM) Plan is to prepare stakeholders for
the transition to digital recordkeeping while minimizing disruptions to daily operations and reducing the
risk of project delays. VDH has identified the digitization activities – including records purging, scanning,
digital storage, and establishment of new recordkeeping processes – that may impact VDH employees’
day-to-day activities. As each office moves through the digitization process, the agency will develop and
implement communications and engagement strategies and supporting resources to build support and
buy-in for this transition. These strategies will focus on informing individuals of the changes taking place,
the impact and benefits, and the steps people can take to prepare for and adopt these changes. Change
activities will accommodate the needs of offices to retain access to files while they are in the process of
Records Management
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
September 2022
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being digitized and stored offsite. They will also include guidance and training for staff on the use of new
digital storage solutions, which will house scanned documents and future digital records.

To date, the agency has implemented an agency-wide change communications plan in preparation for
scanning across VDH Central Offices. This has included agency-wide briefings and emails, updates to the
ARPA Records Management Intranet site, a shared inbox to respond to questions from stakeholders, and
a survey requesting information from offices on their current paper record volume while also promoting
understanding of the office-level impacts of digitization. The agency has also launched an ongoing Records
Purging Communications Campaign with information materials including a purging one-pager,
infomercial, and Frequently Asked Questions to teach offices how to identify paper documents for discard,
which is the first step in the digitization process.

Project Budget
Budget, Obligations, and Actuals as of September 2022


                                   Total                                   Total
 Total
                  $30,000,000      Obligations           $3,202,000        Expenditures           $1,308,000
 Appropriation
                                   (To Date)                               (To Date)


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