This system, funded by a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is called the Licensed-Professionals Emergency and Disaster Registry (LEAD-R).
"Missouri healthcare professionals are generally known to selflessly volunteer their time and expertise at healthcare facilities or disaster sites in an emergency situation," said Robin Vogt, president of the Missouri State Board of Nursing. "However, the identity and licensure of these individuals must be verified before they can help. The new LEAD-R will provide a critically important and efficient information system that allows healthcare facilities to pre-register volunteer healthcare personnel and verify their identity and credentials in the face of an unexpected disaster."
The LEAD-R will serve as an official registry of professionals who are willing to volunteer services whenever the governor or legislature declares a state of emergency. If an emergency situation arises, a query can be run on the new system to identify the appropriate emergency respondents by proximity and credentials.
"Only designated individuals who are responsible for activating and utilizing the system will be able to query the system and activate volunteers," explained Lori Scheidt, executive director of the Missouri State Board of Nursing. "We are currently working with the Department of Health on the operational aspects of the activation."
When a licensed professional is activated, he or she will be required to provide a photo ID and a new license card to check into the emergency staging area. The receiving entity will be able to simply swipe the license card to validate information with the LEAD-R system. The system's software will also enable the incident commander to evaluate who is on-site so he or she can make assignments based on each volunteer's area of expertise.
Each licensee will be assigned a unique PIN number corresponding with the new system. The first set of PIN numbers were issued to registered nurses with their license renewal notices, which were mailed at the beginning of the month. The number will not only allow licensees to sign up for the LEAD-R system if they choose, but it will also allow them to renew their license online and update their information at any time.
