Program Targets Frequent ED Users

CAL/AAEM News Service calaaem_news at yahoo.com
Sun Aug 27 14:07:37 PDT 2006


Program Targets Frequent ED Users
 
Source: California Healthline (http://www.californiahealthline.org)
Date: August 14, 2006 
  

A program in Sacramento called Care Connection is helping frequent emergency department
users find nonemergency medical services, housing and other social services, the
Sacramento Bee reports. Program staff help patients contact social service agencies, fill
out forms and locate transportation to doctor appointments, among other services.

The program, run by a coalition of 10 local groups and the University of California-Davis
Medical Center, is funded by a three year grant from the California Endowment and
California HealthCare Foundation. 

Care Connection Director Robert Durlet said that in a study of 1,300 patients who
regularly use the ED, the majority of patients have chronic illnesses and needed help
obtaining social services. Durlet said patients who lacked transportation to doctor's
offices or missed appointments often would seek care at hospital EDs.

UC-Davis refers patients to the program if they have visited the ED at least six times,
but participation is voluntary. According to program coordinator Jennifer Kellogg, Care
Connection has enrolled about 230 people out of about 1,000 referrals since the program
began in 2005 (Geron, Sacramento Bee, 8/12). 


For more information, please visit:
http://www.californiahealthline.org/index.cfm?action=dspItem&itemID=124195&changedID=124169


Cyrus Shahpar & Brian Potts 
Managing Editors, CAL/AAEM News Service
University of California, Irvine

The CAL/AAEM Archives are available at: http://maillists.uci.edu/mailman/public/calaaem/


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