Two Funding Awards for One Community Health
Success begets success with dedicated reinvestment to enhance integrated care approach.
Quality improvements go supported and now bolstered with more funding for patient-centered care at One Community Health in both The Dalles and Hood River, Ore.
Hood River, Ore., Nov. 7, 2018 — Patients have a right to be at the center of their health care choices and interests. And while the philosophy around patient-centered care isn’t necessarily new, it’s a core aspect of One Community Health’s (OCH) vision of integrated health care—an approach it practices and will now be even more reinforced, thanks to two recent, major funding awards.
Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA)/Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC)* continues as one of OCH’s two major funders, having awarded the Columbia River Gorge’s federally qualified health center with $99,631. The award recognizes OCH’s success, with significant improvements in clinical measures around preventive care, including colorectal and cervical cancer screenings, access to prenatal care, childhood immunizations within the first two years of age, and outcomes relative to reducing low-weight births. In addition, access to care in general has continued to grow, with an increase in patient numbers (7.8 percent), dental patients (8.3 percent) and behavioral health patients (1,684 percent, thanks to a new and expanding behavioral health department).
“The amount funded is nearly double what OCH has received in the past, a testimony to its commitment toward quality improvements as a Tier-4 Patient-Centered Primary Care Home,” says OCH Quality Improvement Director Jennifer Woods. “With these funds, we’ll be reinvesting into our model of team-based, patient-centered care, making even more improvements that will directly enhance the patient experience and healthcare outcomes.”
The second funding awarded to OCH comes from the Columbia Gorge Coordinated Care Organization’s (CCO) Regional Quality Pool. The funds of $302,900, an increase of $80,800 compared to the award given in 2017, shines light on OCH meeting an impressive 15 of 17 quality improvement measures. The consistent improvements in systems and care are paying off, and OCH is being recognized for its commitment to whole-person health.
“Offering medical, dental and behavioral health, we have an integrated approach to care that requires great collaboration, effort and expertise to coordinate and deliver effectively,” says OCH Clinical Integration Director Elizabeth Aughney, DDS. “The awards and, notably the increase in the funding, will just fuel more improvements. It demonstrates how success begets success. And all of us here at OCH are striving for those high measures of success. It takes a village, we’re committed, and we’re thrilled to be experiencing that success, which, most importantly, benefits our patients and advances health and social justice for all.”
* This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
About One Community Health
One Community Health (OCH) is a nonprofit, Federally Qualified Health Center with locations in The Dalles and Hood River, Ore. Formerly known as La Clínica del Cariño Family Health Care Center, Inc., it was founded in 1986 and, today, has evolved into an official Patient-Centered Primary Care Home. OCH currently provides services to more than 12,000 patients. In addition, OCH excels in providing educational programs and support that reflect its integrated approach to health and wellbeing. Dedicated to advancing health and social justice for all its community members, OCH serves patients from the Mid-Columbia River Gorge Region: Wasco, Hood River, Klickitat and Skamania Counties. To donate or for more information, visit the OCH website.
Media Contact:
Katie Roberts, Communications Developer
One Community Health
(303) 709-2912; kroberts@onecommunityhealth.org