The Southwest Virginia Partnership is improving access to health care through a number of exciting initiatives. Some of the projects are described below.
Healthy Appalachia - Healthy Appalachia is a collaboration that includes U.Va.-Wise, U.Va., the Southwest Graduate Medical Education Consortium, the Appalachian Regional Commission, and the Virginia Community Healthcare Association. The purpose of this collaboration is to develop a common understanding of the region’s health status and create a strategic vision of a healthier future for the residents of far Southwest Virginia. Healthy Appalachia seeks to provide policy makers, the medical community, and the region’s citizens the necessary tools and strategies to foster a healthier population.
Specialty Clinics - One significant need in the Coalfield region is access to specialty medical care. The University of Virginia Health System has supported, for example, increased access to nephrology services for Southwest Virginia. The Health System's Department of Medicine is now working with Dr. Sue Cantrell in the LENOWISCO Health District in Wise and Teresa Gardner, NP of The Health Wagon in Clinchco to establish endocrine specialty clinics. Dr. Wende Kozlow is leading this team of U.Va. health care professionals who will see endocrine patients on a regular basis in the region. Follow-up care for all specialties is provided through the Telemedicine Program.
Telemedicine -Telemedicine plays an important role in providing access to health care in rural areas. Using advanced computer applications and broadband telecommunications technologies, the Office of Telemedicine of the University of Virginia Health System regularly facilitates linkages between remotely located patients in the Coalfields and specialty health professionals. With 14 sites in the region located at community hospitals and healthcare centers, specialists at U.Va. partner with local physicians for needed specialty services such as psychiatry, dermatology, neurology, nephrology and endocrine services. With a new grant from the USDA, U.Va. is developing an enhanced cancer telemedicine network for screening, cancer care, access to clinical trials as well as support for case collaboration on complex cancers.
Cancer Initiatives - Mortality from cancer is a significant issue in the Coalfields. The University of Virginia Health System’s Emily Couric Clinical Cancer Center is dedicated to a comprehensive program of cancer control including education, prevention, early detection and access to the latest care. Efforts are currently underway to improve prevention, screening and early detection of breast and cervical cancers. This includes outreach by Dr. Peyton Taylor, a U.Va. Board-certified gynecologist in training a cadre of nurse practitioners from Southwest Virginia to examine and test patients for cervical cancer. This disease is highly treatable if discovered in time, making early detection critical to the long term survival of the patient. Dr. Paula Fracasso is also part of the team helping develop an improved cancer network to help ensure that patients have access to clinical trials being conducted at the University of Virginia.
Mobile Digital Mammography - The University of Virginia has one of only a handful of digital mammography mobile vans in the United States. The van spends a significant portion of time in rural areas including far Southwest Virginia. As part of the USDA grant to enhance cancer telemedicine capacity for cancer screening, the U.Va. Department of Radiology has installed a PACS server installed so that when it arrives at a telemedicine site in the Coalfields, it can connect and beam digital images directly to breast imaging radiologists at the U.Va. Health System.
Flu Vaccines – U.Va. and Southern Health provided almost 500 doses of the influenza virus vaccine to St. Mary’s Health Wagon in December 2007, to be administered to patients who might otherwise be unable to receive the vaccine. St. Mary’s Health Wagon is a mobile clinic that offers free, quality health care to people in the rural mountains of Appalachia.
Health Education and Outreach - U.Va. Health System provides a significant number of health education, outreach and training programs into the Coalfields. This include initiatives such as the Diabetes Education series provided through the U.Va. Health System’s Virginia Center for Diabetes, Continuing Medicine Education including trainings in infectious disease and pediatric psychiatry and cancer education programs through the U.Va. Cancer Center.
Remote Area Medicine Initiative - In partnership with local organizations, the U.Va. Health System works to meet the immediate health-care needs of Coalfield residents in southwestern Virginia, while developing resources for sustained care through the Remote Area Medical Program in Wise. The main collaborative partners in the delivery of medical, dental and vision services are the Lenowisco Health District, the St. Mary's Health Wagon, the local and state Lion's Clubs, the University of Virginia Health System, the Virginia Dental Foundation, Virginia Commonwealth University, and the Remote Area Medical Volunteer Corps. Last year health professionals from the U.Va. Health System treated more than 1,600 patients. During the three-day clinic, patients sought a wide range of services such as gynecological procedures, mammograms, hearing screenings, lab tests, and colon cancer screenings for a total of 7,165 patient encounters. Additionally, for the first time, patients were assigned medical record numbers on site and registered in the U.Va. system. This groundbreaking effort means that their medical records will be available to physicians anywhere online on the CareCast network.
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