Excerpts from the Daily Herald:
Sherman Hospital in the state has become the pioneer in offering mobile integrated healthcare services—essentially, healthcare beyond the confines of the hospital setting—by deploying on-site paramedics. Alongside Sherman, five other hospitals in Rockford, Peoria, and Champaign have partnered with local fire departments and ambulance services to provide these mobile services.
The Sherman initiative involves weekly house calls over a span of 30 days for selected patients post-discharge. The aim is to ensure that patients do not end up being readmitted. Those eligible include individuals who have survived heart attacks or are dealing with conditions like pneumonia, diabetes, asthma, heart failure, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The program commenced at the tail-end of December. Patients can join this free program irrespective of their insurance status, mentioned Ken Snow, an Advocate Sherman Hospital paramedic who manages the program alongside a part-time paramedic.
"We review the discharge plan, go through the medications, conduct an assessment, and offer educational sessions to help them understand their health condition better and manage it effectively at home," Snow explained. "Later, I communicate the findings back to their primary care physicians."
While mobile integrated healthcare is relatively new in Illinois, it has caught on in states like Minnesota, Michigan, Arizona, and California.
A special committee took approximately two years to develop a mobile integrated health plan for the Illinois Department of Public Health. Last year, the department's emergency medical services advisory council approved the pilot scheme.
National statistics show that mobile care significantly reduces hospital readmissions, particularly in regions with restricted access to healthcare or where conventional home health services are scarce.
"One of our initial concerns was whether this project intended to replace traditional home health care. The answer is 'definitely not,'" said Valerie Phillips, co-chair of the committee. "This aims to bridge the gap for individuals who are ineligible for home health services, decline them due to various reasons, or lack the funds for such services. It fills a specific niche."
So far, 22 patients have taken part in the Sherman program. Out of these, 10 completed the program successfully, staying out of the hospital for 30 days following discharge; two were readmitted, while the remaining participants dropped out for different reasons. This translates to a 9% 30-day readmission rate for the program, compared to 12% among similar high-risk patients in 2015, according to data from Sherman.
"Initial outcomes suggest that patients committed to this free program are very likely to avoid unnecessary ER visits and hospital stays," noted Tina Link, director of community outreach for the hospital. "The more patients we reach, the more we uncover potential hurdles impacting their ability to finish the program successfully, and we're actively addressing these challenges as we progress."
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