NUHEALTH ANNOUNCES THE OPENING OF ITS NUCARE PROGRAM, PROVIDING ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE FOR UNINSURED, WITH OVER 100 PATIENTS ENROLLED TO DATE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 11, 2010
PRESS CONTACT:
Shelley Lotenberg
shelley@numc.edu
516-572-6055
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NUHEALTH ANNOUNCES THE OPENING OF ITS NUCARE PROGRAM, PROVIDING ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE FOR UNINSURED, WITH OVER 100 PATIENTS ENROLLED TO DATE
NUCARE TO PROVIDE MEDICAL HOMES, WITH IMPROVED CARE, BETTER HEALTH OUTCOMES AND COST MANAGEMENT
East Meadow, NY……..Arthur A. Gianelli, President/CEO of the NuHealth System, announced the opening of NuHealth System’s NuCare program, its new program to provide access to comprehensive medical care to uninsured Nassau residents at its Family Health Centers in Hempstead, Roosevelt/Freeport, Westbury/New Cassel and Elmont. The program has been piloted at the Hempstead Family Health Center and will roll out in the remaining centers in the first quarter of 2010, with over 100 patients enrolled to date.
NuCare is a program designed to achieve the “triple aim”: providing improved care, accomplishing better health outcomes and managing costs for the uninsured population in Nassau who avail themselves of the NuHealth System’s healthcare services.
According to Gianelli, who lauded the program for improving access to healthcare for the uninsured, “The program will create medical homes for every uninsured patient, with a collaborative care model: bringing physician based medical services, prevention education and programming, chronic disease prevention and management, concurrent healthy lifestyle program participation, and the involvement of community resources to address the myriad of challenges facing low income persons in Nassau County.”
The program’s success hinges on identifying uninsured patients, those receiving health care presently in our Family Health Centers, as emergency department patients, in specialty clinics, and through inpatient care and introducing them to the NuCare system. In preparation for the launch of NuCare, outreach began with admitted patients, emergency department patients and health center patients who live in Hempstead or Uniondale with an introduction to our NuCare programs.
Key staffing features of the program include:
Care Management/Patient Navigation/Coaching
Member Services – Enrollment and System Navigation
Disease Prevention and Management Coaching, and
Health Education
“Patient navigation and care coordination services are critical to the delivery of better care and to empowering individuals through good access and education to take charge of their health,” added Gianelli. “Rather than receiving crisis driven, episodic health care, wellness visits, vaccinations, screening programs, and lifestyle management will be put in place for the uninsured, so their health outcome will improve.”
Diane Cohen, director of the NuCare program, emphasized the importance of the program to improving healthcare in underserved communities: “Follow up with patients is a key feature of the NuCare program. The relationship established between the health management coach and the patient will increase trust in the system of care and will hold each patient accountable for minding their health status.”
The dignity of every patient will be maintained. There are income eligibility criteria, allowing a family of four with an income of up to $44,100 to apply for NuCare services. Patients will be asked to contribute to the cost of their care through a sliding scale payment. Eligibility for public and private insurance products will be determined prior to entering NuCare and revisited during the course of participation.
For more information about NuCare, please contact Diane Cohen, Director of NuCare at dcohen@numc.edu or via phone at (516) 296-CARE (2273).
ABOUT NUHEALTH:
NuHealth is a Long Island health care organization delivering essential medical care and disease and lifestyle management to everyone at every stage of life. Also known as Nassau Health Care Corporation, NuHealth is a public benefit corporation managing the operations of Nassau University Medical Center, A. Holly Patterson Extended Care and a network of Family Health Centers that bring primary and specialty care out into the community. By emphasizing wellness, cultural sensitivity and collaborative efforts with the North Shore-LIJ Health System, NuHealth is working to make good care more affordable and easier to access.
For more information about NuHealth or its Centers of Care, visit www.nuhealth.net.