MODELS FOR PRACTICE
FOCUS AREA: EDUCATIONAL AND COMMUNITY-BASED
PROGRAMS
Program Name:
Location:
Healthy People 2010 Objective: 7
Web Address: None
Partnership
for Access to Healthcare (PATH) is committed to enhancing communications, optimizing
resources, and increasing access to health care for all residents of the New
River Valley (NRV), especially the uninsured and underinsured. PATH is a
collaborative, community-focused alliance of over 50 public and private health
and human service organizations, universities, local governments,
local/state/national legislators, local elected officials such as members of
city councils and boards of supervisors, the faith community, public school
systems, civic groups, health care professionals, businesses, and consumers.
Blueprint: PATH is a collaborative,
community-focused partnership chaired by two co-conveners and governed by the
full membership. Six work groups under the leadership of a chairperson address
identified issues. The five local hospitals and
PATH is a
partnership of volunteers; there are no paid or donated staff. The co-conveners
and secretarial staff of PATH members donate their time and carry out the majority
of the organization’s business.
Med-Ride, PATH’s first initiative, addressed a documented, serious gap, transportation, which is a barrier in the community’s health care delivery system. PATH also addresses access to medical care for the low-income uninsured/underinsured by offering non-emergency transportation to all health care services.
The
Pro Bono Counseling Program is based on a “free clinic model” for the delivery
of mental health care. The program addresses the problem of access by providing
free mental health counseling for low to moderate income uninsured while
allowing practicing mental health professionals a legal and convenient way to
volunteer their services. An anti-stigma campaign was also initiated. (See also
the Pro Bono Counseling model in the Mental Health and Mental Disorders focus
area for more information.)
PATH
has also collaborated with the Council of Community Services on the Directory
of Community Services. This directory, available on-line and via an 800 number,
offers free, comprehensive information on more than 2,000 public and private
health and human service providers/programs in southwestern Virginia. This
directory assists professionals in locating and linking residents with
appropriate services.
PATH
members and the Council of Community Services sponsors the NRV Community
Resources Fair on the campus of
The
Family Access to Medical Insurance Security (FAMIS) Outreach Program was
started as a PATH collaboration to assist children from families with too much
income to be eligible for Medicaid. PATH members wrote letters of support for
The
Pulaski County Senior Health Screening Event resulted from a collaborative PATH
effort by members of the chronic illness subcommittee. PATH members and
Program
interventions occur in all community settings including private physicians’
offices, hospitals, health and human service organizations, the faith community
client homes, mobile clinics, a university-based clinic, and the schools.
Making
a Difference: PATH’s success is indicated by positive service outcomes and tangible
results that improved the community’s health status. Another indicator of
PATH’s success is the successful recruitment of volunteers. The majority of
Med-Ride’s services are accomplished with volunteers. The Pro Bono Counseling
Program operates with volunteer counselors and psychiatrists—40 percent of all
mental health professionals in the New River Valley Partnership volunteer in
the program. The New River Valley Community Health Needs Assessment utilized
community health assessment teams composed of diverse community members, as
well as student volunteers from
Beginnings: The original stakeholders
and founders of PATH were the Free Clinic of the
In
the spring of 1999, PATH conducted the New River Valley Community Health Needs
Assessment to obtain a current health profile of NRV communities. The survey
also included a behavioral risk factor assessment. This was the first
standardized and nationally comparable assessment ever conducted in the region.
The assessment consisted of five data components¾focus groups, provider
survey, secondary health indicator data, citizen mail-out survey, and personal
interviews within targeted groups. It was coordinated by a subcommittee of PATH
representatives from the New River Valley’s two health care systems—Carilion
and Columbia, the NRV Health District, Radford University, Virginia Tech, and
the Free Clinic of the NRV. This subcommittee also collaborated with the New
Century Turning Point Partnership in looking at health needs on a regional
basis. Major health issues identified included mental health treatment,
poverty, medication costs, work skills, lack of affordable insurance, family
abuse and violence, management of chronic health conditions, and drug abuse. To
address these identified issues, PATH initiated six work groups: dental health,
mental health, medications, chronic illness, child health, and faith and
health.
Challenges and Solutions: PATH found that community
partnerships breed success. Cross-sectoral collaboration is a complex
undertaking. Collaboration involves the creation of functional relationships
among numerous people from diverse backgrounds who work at various levels in
different organizations. The process by which these relationships are promoted
has a profound effect on the success of the collaboration.
PATH
also found that the keys to successful partnerships are:
Dr.
Janet McDaniel
Phone: (540) 831-7662
Fax: (540) 831-7716