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The CEI: Project Outreach
| Topics |
Health services
Telehealth
Transportation
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| States served |
Louisiana
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| Description |
The CEI: Project Outreach will expand upon the Bayou Teche Community Health Network's Information and Help Center, Medication Assistance Program, Telehealth Project, and Chronic Disease Management/Prevention Outreach Programs.
ByNet's St. Mary Parish (County) Chamber of Health Coalition, which is comprised of over 70 representatives of health care, social service, consumer, faith-based and governmental entities, identified five key areas of need to improve healthcare in St. Mary and surrounding Parishes. Focus groups and committee research led the coalition to identify education, consumer-finance, transportation, access to medication, and primary and specialty care as key barriers to health care access for residents. In addition, the Health Access Barriers in the State (HABITS) Survey was conducted for the three target counties. The University of Louisiana at Lafayette's Health Informatics Center conducted the surveys used as baseline data for network program evaluation.
The target population for the project is the underinsured and uninsured residents of St. Mary, Iberia, and Terrebonne Parishes in south central Louisiana along the Gulf Coast. This population has recently experienced an enormous influx due to Hurricane Katrina survivors who have migrated into local communities. Those organizations comprising the consortium are the founding members of the Bayou Teche Community Health Network (ByNet). The State's first vertical rural health network members include two state hospitals, two St. Mary Parish rural hospitals, one St. Mary Parish Federally Qualified Health Center, one Iberia Parish Federally Qualified Health Center, one tribal clinic, one Louisiana Regional Office of Public Health, one social service agency, and a representative of the St. Mary Chamber of Health Coalition. |
| Services offered |
Emergency room usage, lack of health insurance, transportation, and inability to afford needed medications were identified as key concerns for all three target areas. In 2001, the network's consortium of members began to implement programs and services to address identified needs. In the aftermath of the September 2005 Hurricane Katrina devastation experienced in the southern coastal region of the United States, the previously identified needs have significantly enhanced to an insurmountable level. St. Mary, Iberia and Terrebone Parishes have now become home to thousands of survived families requiring these services. |
| Results |
Expected results of the project include:
Increased enrollment in local, State and national programs (i.e., LaChip/Medicaid/Medicare Savings/Care for the Caregiver);
Continued decrease in non-emergency ER use;
Increase in outreach partners comprising Community Health Teams;
Increase in number of comprehensive screenings (i.e. diabetes/blood pressure and service eligibility);
Establishment of single points of entry for patient mapping;
Leverage of State funds ($50,000) and Federal funds ($150,000);
Increase in number of residents with an identified medical home;
Increase in number of churches providing transportation to medical care;
Consortium access to state-wide meetings and seminars through coordination of teleconferencing equipment; and
Accumulation of additional data on the target population through Service Point customization and expansion. |
| Source |
Rural Health Outreach Grantee Directory, 2006
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| Contact person |
Rev. Craig A. Mathews
ByNet Executive Director
P.O. Box 278
Franklin, Louisiana 70538
Phone: (337) 828-5638, ext 104
E-Mail: cmathews@bynet-la.org |
| Date added |
January 16, 2007 |
Summaries of success stories are provided by RAC for your convenience. Please contact the success story contact person directly for the most complete and current information.
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