Financing community health workers in transitions clinics
- Collection:
- Health Policy and Services Research
- Series Title(s):
- How to pay for it (California HealthCare Foundation)
- Author(s):
- Hogan, Laura, author Macdonald Mendez, Tracy, author
- Contributor(s):
- California HealthCare Foundation, issuing body.
- Publication:
- [Oakland, Calif.] : California Health Care Foundation, November 2018
- Language(s):
- English
- Format:
- Text
- Subject(s):
- Ambulatory Care Facilities -- economics Community Health Services -- economics Community Health Workers -- economics Primary Health Care -- economics Prisoners Transitional Care -- economics Case Management Health Services Needs and Demand Managed Care Programs Mental Health Services Opiate Substitution Treatment Patient-Centered Care Vulnerable Populations Humans California United States
- Genre(s):
- Technical Report
- Abstract:
- The Transitions Clinic model is an evidence-based program designed to serve people with chronic diseases who have recently been released from incarceration. Operated by health centers located in communities with high rates of incarceration, Transitions Clinic Network (TCN) programs assist people in this vulnerable population with reintegration into their neighborhoods and lives. TCN sites have served thousands of patients in California and other states. TCN provides training, coaching, and networking opportunities to help clinics launch and grow these programs. Founded on the idea that people with lived experience are best able to support people returning to their communities, each clinic that adopts the TCN model employs a community health worker (CHW) with a history of incarceration as a vital member of its clinical team. CHWs meet with all patients one-on-one, connecting them with health and social services through outreach, assessment, education, counseling, follow-up, and advocacy. Working both inside and outside the clinic, CHWs act as liaisons that help ensure that clients receive culturally relevant health services. They build a unique trust with clients the sees them using primary care more, using emergency departments less, and being hospitalized less often. Training for CHWs in the TCN can be provided in a number of ways, including TCN's specialized online training or an in-person CHW certificate program called the Reentry Specialist Certificate, offered at City College of San Francisco. In two different studies, the TCN model has been demonstrated to reduce emergency department visits and preventable hospitalizations by half. It is clear that the health plans covering these members can save money, and yet clinics operating a TCN program need to consider how they can support the salary of one or more CHWs. Some clinics are implementing CHW services without specific funding in the belief that future payment models will incorporate new staffing models and services. The items below represent a menu of funding options for clinics and health systems to consider in covering CHW services. Some will be more applicable to Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and others to county clinics; several have relevance for all clinic models. Most Transitions Clinic programs blend funding from two or more sources.
- Copyright:
- Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY-NC-ND license. (More information)
- Extent:
- 1 online resource (1 PDF file (7 pages))
- Illustrations:
- Illustrations
- NLM Unique ID:
- 101744620 (See catalog record)
- Permanent Link:
- http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101744620