Government Healthcare Initiative

Government Healthcare Initiative

CLIENT OVERVIEW

Our client is a centralized state government looking to improve its health outreach services and provide better access to medical care for its underserved, densely urban population.

CHALLENGE

This state has experienced an above-average cost of healthcare growth in recent years, partially due to an aging population, but also because of limited access to timely healthcare and employer-sponsored insurance premiums growing nearly three times faster than personal income.

THE PROJECT

To counteract the gaps in local healthcare infrastructure, the state government is implementing a Mobile Integrated Health and Community Paramedicine program that authorizes certain EMTs and paramedics to step outside their traditional roles to practice "mobile integrated healthcare." The program may include services such as over-the-phone advice provided to 911 callers instead of resource dispatch, community paramedicine care, preventive care or post-discharge follow-up visits using patient-centered, mobile resources. In some situations, the protocol gives EMTs greater leeway to provide emergency treatment at the scene without taking a patient to the emergency room. In all cases, this approach is supplemental to existing healthcare systems or resources that fill in the gaps on a local, community-centered, and patient-facing level.

APPROACH

The organization partnered with Talent Groups to leverage our Healthcare IT expertise, engaging an Epic Ambulatory Analyst to support FHIR-based integrations between cloud-enabled devices and the EHR. The cuffs captured patient readings, securely encrypted vital data, and transmitted the information to a HIPAA-compliant web portal for clinical access.

IMPACT

Our consultant plans, organizes, and oversees monitoring for the MIH/CP program while supporting the EMS information system. She ensures the accuracy, integrity, and quality of collected data, resolves data quality issues, and collaborates with database developers to enhance system functionality and database design. Through this work, the program is advancing the evolution of EMS from a transportation-based service to a fully integrated component of the nation’s healthcare system—helping reduce costs and improve access to comprehensive, patient-centered care.