Five Health Systems Participating in Mobile Care Learning Collaborative
Virginia’s UVA Health is one of five health systems nationwide selected to join a mobile care collaborative to share lessons learned and discover how to enhance the services provided by its mobile care unit.
UVA Health is receiving a $10,000 grant from the Lowenstein Foundation to participate in the collaborative, which runs through October. The selected health systems will work with research and education group Essential Hospitals Institute to cover key topics that include building trust, increasing care capacity, financing and staffing.
UVA Health’s mobile care unit, which formally launched in January, can provide initial care and then help a patient establish care at a brick-and-mortar outpatient clinic; provide non-emergency care that can’t wait for a scheduled visit; or serve as a patient’s primary care provider.
The mobile care unit’s services include:
• general health check-ups
• chronic disease management
• pediatric care
• care for minor illnesses and injuries
• women’s health
• lab tests
“There are very few of these mobile care units in the United States that provide primary care services,” said Novella W. Thompson, M.B.A., administrator of UVA Health’s Population Health Department, in a statement. “Through the collaborative, we hope to share our lessons learned and best practices, as well as see how other health systems are focusing their services and measuring healthy outcomes for all.”
Besides UVA Health, the following hospitals are participating in the learning collaborative:
• Carilion Clinic, Roanoke, Va.: Primary Care Mobile Health Enhancement Project supports patients with transportation challenges or post-hospital care needs at home via its Family and Community Medicine Mobile Health team.
• East Alabama Medical Center, Opelika, Ala.: Opelika Neighborhood Mobile Wellness Clinic provides free screenings and resources to underserved rural areas.
• Huntsville Hospital Health System, Huntsville, Ala.: Vámonos: Making Healthcare Accessible to Non-English Speakers in Madison County Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) offers free preventive care in underserved Madison County communities.
• WVU Medicine, Morgantown, W.Va.: Mobile Comprehensive Opioid Addiction Treatment (COAT) program ensures access to quality care in the state’s rural areas.
