The State Systems Development Initiative (SSDI), a grant funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), supports activities to enhance data capacity for data driven decision making crucial for attaining better MCH outcomes. The purpose of the SSDI Project is to supplement Title V MCH programs and services through activities supporting three goals: 1) to build and expand MCH data capacity to support the Title V MCH Block Grant program activities and to contribute to data-driven decision making as it relates to assessment, planning, and evaluation of MCH programs, 2) to advance the development and utilization of linked MCH-related data systems, and 3) to provide data support in state quality improvement activities. The SSDI Analyst coordinates the Title V MCH Five-Year Needs Assessment and plays a supporting role in the preparation and submission of the Title V MCH Block Grant Application and Annual Report.

As part of the Five-Year Needs Assessment process, the SSDI Project played an integral part disseminating a public input survey and conducting listening sessions, all paramount for identifying the needs and concerns individuals face in Oklahoma communities. Public input surveys were distributed at conferences, meetings, and made available on the OSDH website. The first listening session focused on families of children and youth with special health care needs and was held at the 12th Annual Joining Forces Conference.  MCH Tribal Listening Sessions focused on Oklahoma’s American Indian populations, consisting of: 1) Go Red for American Indian Heart Health Conference, 2) the Cherokee Nation, 3) the Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes, 4) Chickasaw Nation, 5) Choctaw Nation, 6) Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and 7) the Northeastern Tribal Health System. Another listening session was held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at a family and youth center providing services primarily for African American families. Also, MCH and SSDI analysts developed narratives giving a descriptive view of relevant MCH indicators within each of the MCH domains.

The SSDI Analyst collected County Health Needs Assessments and Community Health Needs Assessment from counties and hospitals across the state of Oklahoma. The assessments are reviewed for needs and concerns specific to women, infants, children and youth.  Relevant information from these assessments will be provided to MCH staff.

MCH data capacity is also expanded by the work of the MCH Medicaid Analyst, a position jointly funded by MCH and OHCA, the state’s Medicaid agency. This position is responsible for linking and analyzing birth certificate records and Medicaid administrative data. A work group staffed by MCH and OHCA personnel directs the linking and analysis efforts. Birth and Medicaid records are linked for years 2015 with analyses on neonatal substance withdrawal, the use of 17P among Medicaid enrollees, and infant mortality. An analysis plan for 2020 has been drafted to direct assessment activities of the Medicaid Data Sharing Work Group.