The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #48827

Geoffrey Nagle, PhD, LCSW, MPH¹, Clayton Williams, MPH², Willie Mae Martin, MSW³, Cara Johnson², Erness Wright-Irvin, MHA³, and William P. Fisher, PhD⁴. (1) Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Tulane University School of Medicine, 1440 Canal St., TB52, New Orleans, LA 70112, 504-988-8241, gnagle@tulane.edu, (2) New Orleans Partnership for Care of the Uninsured, Louisiana Public Health Institute, 1600 Canal St., Suite 501, New Orleans, LA 70112, (3) Community Services, Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans, 2021 Perdido St., New Orleans, LA 70112, (4) Public Health & Preventive Medicine, LSU Health Sciences Center, 1600 Canal Street, Suite 800, New Orleans, LA 70112

The New Orleans Partnership for Care of the Uninsured (NOPCU), a public/private partnership of leaders in the health and social service sectors of New Orleans, was formed in order to address local concerns about disparities in health outcomes and lack of access to healthcare. Utilizing their collective resources, as well as funds from HRSA's Community Access Program, the NOPCU resolved to develop a seamless health care delivery system for the medically underserved residents of Orleans Parish. One of the primary initiatives of the NOPCU is to establish a referral process from the Emergency Department (ED) of the Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans (MCLNO), to an appropriate primary care provider (PCP). Utilization of the ED for non-urgent care is very costly to the system, and it is hypothesized that patients would benefit from utilizing a primary care provider that: 1) is located close to their home; 2) provides continuity of care; 3) has access to specialty and diagnostic services. Semi-structured interviews of MCLNO ED consumers were conducted to assess why people chose the ED for non-emergent care, if they perceived any value in a having a PCP, and if they would be willing to see a PCP if there were a co-pay. Subsequently, a social marketing campaign was developed to highlight the benefits of having a PCP, and it was targeted to both patients and staff of the MCLNO ED. Evaluation of this initiative includes monitoring subsequent health care utilization of those choosing to be referred to a PCP.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

• Describe a referral process from an Emergency Department at a major public hospital to available primary care providers.
• Detail results from interviews with Emergency Department consumers regarding their perceptions of primary care , their willingness to have a primary care provider and what is an acceptable cost of such health care.
• Articulate a social marketing campaign designed to highlight the benefits of having a primary care provider.

Keywords: Emergency Department/Room, Primary Care

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.