Records Management ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report (December 2022)

Summary

The Records Management ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report for December 2022 from the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), dated 12/31/2022. Its key activities include revising and re-releasing a vendor RFP due to incomplete applications in the first round of submissions, creating a Records Management Spend Plan and a throughput tracker, and developing a Draft Records Management Digitization Playbook. The project budget table, as of December 2022, lists a total appropriation of $30,000,000, obligations to date of $3,684,200 and expenditures to date of $1,713,000.

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




                                12/31/2022
Records Management
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
December 2022
Page 2 of 6


Table of Contents
Report Mandate ............................................................................................................................................ 3
Context for ARPA Initiatives .......................................................................................................................... 3
Executive Summary....................................................................................................................................... 3
Overview of Quarterly Progress (October – December 2022)...................................................................... 4
Anticipated Next Quarter Activities (January – March 2023) ....................................................................... 5
Risks and Risk Management ......................................................................................................................... 5
Change Management Considerations........................................................................................................... 5
Project Budget .............................................................................................................................................. 6
Records Management
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
December 2022
Page 3 of 6


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 a portion of the
current paper-based records management processes to improve information accessibility and
interoperability. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the inefficiency of existing paper-processes and
made it more challenging for VDH to respond to requests from other government agencies, businesses,
and the public. Physical office space is required for paper records, and there is a large amount of valuable
office space dedicated to record storage that could be repurposed to better meet agency needs.
Additionally, there is limited contingency planning developed if paper records were to be lost or damaged
by fire, flood, or other natural disasters. Digitizing paper records and automating outdated paper-based
processes will enable employees to work more effectively and efficiently, and better serve Virginians.

VDH has made progress across the three pilot locations, Office of Drinking Water (ODW), Office of
Licensure & Certification (OLC), and Office of Vital Records (OVR). The scanning vendor for ODW continues
to scan records for the Richmond and Culpepper Field Offices. Purging and document preparation
continue across the remaining ODW Field Offices. Digital storage solutions continue to progress; ODW’s
SharePoint site and an automation process for transferring metadata onto files will be complete by
January 2023. OLC and OVR are finalizing the list of file types for digitization in preparation for scanning.
VDH re-issued a scanning vendor Request for Proposal (RFP) for OLC, OVR, and future offices, with revised
requirements and is expected to select vendors by January 2023.

VDH has established a reusable records digitization process flow, captured pilot lessons learned, and has
a three phased approach to launch the initiative agency-wide. Planning resources and checklists by phase
are under development to allow for rapid office onboarding. During this quarter VDH developed a draft
spend plan and timeline, a playbook, and a Throughput Tracker to monitor document preparation and
scanning progress.
Records Management
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
December 2022
Page 4 of 6


In the next quarter, VDH will begin the digitization process in five additional Central Offices, initiate
preparation activities within the remaining ODW Field Offices, onboard a scanning vendor, and establish
digital storage options. Ongoing processes will be developed to support policies for the pilot offices to
maintain digital recordkeeping and prevent the future buildup of paper once records have been digitized.
VDH will continue to encourage records purging across all remaining 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:
    ●   Improve data access and interoperability across Central Offices and LHDs
    ●   Eliminate the time and effort associated with retrieving paper documents in multiple locations
    ●   Release physical storage space across VDH facilities

Overview of Quarterly Progress (October – December 2022)
Since the submission of the September 2022 quarterly status report, VDH has continued to advance the
Records Management Initiative by planning an efficient and effective approach to digitize files.

Key Activities and Accomplishments

    ●   Overall Records Management:
           o Revised and re-released purging, document preparation, and/or scanning vendor RFP due
                to incomplete applications in the first round of submissions
           o Created Records Management Spend Plan and timeline for engaging with other VDH
                Central Offices and LHDs, including sequencing of offices for digitization
           o Created throughput tracker to monitor document preparation and scanning activities
           o Developed Draft Records Management Digitization Playbook which includes the step-by-
                step activities and supporting resources for digitization
           o Finalized initiative key performance indicators (KPIs)
           o Onboarded team to ProjectPlace, which will be used for project management and tracking
                across all RM initiative workstreams
    ●   ODW:
           o Continued to onboard and supervise document preparation contractors
           o Developed SharePoint digital storage solution, including refining process flow and
                business requirements and finalizing automated process to attach metadata to files
           o Developed ODW Implementation Plan to guide the office through remaining digitization
           o Developed ODW SharePoint Training Plan, including audiences, training needs,
                and content for development, based on current business requirements
           o Identified and documented Lessons Learned from ODW Richmond Field Office to inform
                digitization at remaining ODW Field Offices
    ●   OLC:
           o Began developing office-specific retention schedule to guide purging across all OLC
                record types
Records Management
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
December 2022
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            o Hired contractor to support OLC purging activities to begin in January 2023
    ●   OVR: Continued to develop approach to the digitization of sealed certificates and transfer of
        already scanned records at OVR to new digital storage solution
    ●   Additional Central Offices and LHDs:
            o Held meeting with Richmond/Henrico Health District for preliminary discussion on scope
                and record types for digitization
            o Facilitated digitization kick-off meeting with Office of Radiological Health to discuss
                scope, expected timeline for digitization effort, and purging support

Anticipated Next Quarter Activities (January – March 2023)
The following outlines the activities and tasks planned from January through March 2023:

    •   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
    •   Revise Records Management Spend Plan to reflect new vendor costs, once vendors are selected
        from RFP process
    •   Continue scoping and planning activities for next phase of Central Offices, Office of Medical
        Examiner, Office of Procurement Services, and Environmental Health Services
    •   Finalize OLC office-specific retention policy and begin providing contractor-supported purging
    •   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
    •   Develop SharePoint training materials and facilitate training sessions for ODW leadership and staff
    •   Continue Records Purging Communications Campaign to encourage VDH Central Offices to purge
        paper records
    •   Continue to 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 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-January.

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.
Records Management
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
December 2022
Page 6 of 6


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 ongoing operations – that may impact VDH employees’ day-to-day activities. As each
office moves through the digitization process, the agency will develop and implement engagement
strategies and 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 being digitized and stored offsite. They will also include
guidance and training for staff on the use of new digital storage solutions for digitized records.

To date, the agency has implemented an agency-wide Change Communications Plan in preparation for
scanning across VDH Central Offices. This includes 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 materials including a purging one-pager and infomercial 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 December 2022

                                    Total                                  Total
 Total
                   $30,000,000      Obligations          $3,684,200        Expenditures            $1,713,000
 Appropriation
                                    (To Date)                              (To Date)


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