VIP Community Services

Shared visit notes, often referred to as open notes, are an important way to help consumers become active participants in their own care.

When patients have access to their own visit notes written by health care providers, they better remember and act on information discussed during visits, improve communication with their health care team, and better manage their health. The 21st Century Cures Act, a recent federal mandate, requires health care providers to make clinical notes available to patients electronically and at no charge. However, the level of compliance and, most importantly, the proactive use of open notes to improve care vary among health systems. In 2022, NYHealth issued a Request for Proposals (RFP), “From Good to Great: Improving Access to and Use of Patient Visit Notes in Non-Hospital Systems,” to support non-hospital systems across New York State in sharing open notes in compliance with recent federal rules and using open notes to more meaningfully engage patients. In 2023, NYHealth awarded Vocational Instruction Project (VIP) Community Services a grant to participate in this initiative.

VIP Community Services is a federally qualified health center and multi-service agency in the Bronx that provides primary care, mental health and addiction services, housing, and wraparound services to approximately 6,000 patients and clients annually. Under this grant, VIP Community Services will continue to implement and improve the use of shared notes within its system and participate in a technical assistance and peer-learning network. It will enhance the sharing and usability of notes through provider training, notes audit, and the use of virtual scribes. VIP Community Services will also conduct patient education and outreach and seek patient feedback.

See a full list of grantees participating in this initiative.