Four of the five national mission critical Indian Health Service (IHS) systems are Y2K compliant. The four systems deal with the National Patient Information Reporting Systems (NPIRS), a national statistical system that supports workload reporting, resource generation, performance evaluation, and national budget development. Each of these systems is 100% ready for January 1, 2000. In addition, contingency plans for these systems will be developed as the IHS enters the next phase of preparing for the Year 2000.

The fifth system undergoing Year 2000 conversion is the Resource and Patient Management System (RPMS) which supports patient care and public health activities. RPMS software components are also used in more than 300 IHS, tribal, and urban Indian health programs nationwide to manage resources. The RPMS program consists of more than 96 modules. All these software modules have been updated and are compliant. The remaining activity for this fifth mission critical system is for each facility to update its RPMS hardware and software for the modules that they use with Y2K compliant versions. As of March 31st, the implementation of the Y2K compliant software is 78% complete for the IHS direct programs, 63% complete for tribal programs, and 47% for urban Indian health programs. After implementation is completed, acceptance testing will began on the modules. Finally, contingency plans will be developed and implemented no later than fall 1999.

The IHS is working to assist its tribal and urban Indian health care partners with their Year 2000 conversion. Tribally operated programs and urban Indian health programs run systems independent of the IHS direct programs systems. Earlier this year, the IHS distributed Y2K Resource Kits (videos, brochures, and CD-ROM references) to more than 1,100 tribal programs, urban programs, and other Indian organizations.

“ We are working closely with tribal and urban programs as they prepare their systems to continue to deliver quality, uninterrupted health care services to American Indians and Alaska Natives,” said Michael H. Trujillo, M.D., M.P.H., M.S., Director of the IHS. “ They have made remarkable progress. As their inventory and assessments are completed, we are transferring to them the funds that the President has made available to address this issue.”

The IHS participated in a Y2K Tribal Outreach Meeting in Phoenix, AZ, last week, one of several activities scheduled for National Y2K Action Week as planned by the President’s Council on Year 2000 Conversion. The President’s Council includes a Tribal Nations Working Group composed of the IHS, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the Small Business Administration, and other federal agencies to coordinate and assist Y2K activities with tribal governments and Indian organizations. The outreach meeting was part of the nationwide observance of Y2K Action Week, March 29 through April 2, 1999.

The Phoenix meeting covered the five-phase approach to dealing with the Y2K problem and also the use of the Year 2000 Inventory Manager, business continuity and contingency planning, and tribal expectations. The objective of Y2K activities is to raise awareness through seminars and activities targeting tribes served by the IHS and BIA.

NOTICE TO EDITORS: To schedule an interview with Richard Church, Chief Information Officer, or Bruce Parker, Y2K Outreach Activities Coordinator, contact Ms. Nina Miller, IHS Public Affairs at (301) 443-1757. Additional information about IHS Y2K is available on the website http://www2.ihs.gov/y2k/.