At the center of better health outcomes is patient engagement. Patients invested in their healthcare are more likely to reach out for care and that is even more true when they are able to receive a range of procedures at their primary care health center where they have built trusting relationships. MedNorth requested funding to support new initiatives in patient engagement through the purchase of essential equipment. That equipment will allow MedNorth to perform more procedures in house, increasing the likelihood that their patients will follow through with the treatment they need. These initiatives will serve several specific populations: 

•   Self-Measured Blood Pressure Monitoring (SMBP) Program: 
  

MedNorth currently serves over 1500 patients with a diagnosis of hypertension. The new SMBP initiative will start with 100 patients whose hypertension has been uncontrolled. Each of those patients will receive a blood pressure monitor to measure their pressure daily, along with training from the nursing staff on how to measure blood pressure and information on the importance of medication adherence, as well as diet and exercise. 

•   Safe Car Seats for Newborns 
  

A newborn should be seen by a physician within five (5) days of being discharged from the hospital. Of the 53 MedNorth patients who delivered in 2018, only 28 of those newborns were seen in that important five-day window. The most coming reason for not coming was the lack of a car seat. With 50 car rear facing car seats purchased through WIN funding, a car seat will be delivered by staff before the mother and infant are discharged from the hospital so the infant can be seen on schedule establishing good health practices from the start. 

•   Other Equipment to increase inhouse service delivery and increase service completion: 
  

LEEP (loop electrosurgical excision procedure) instruments to remove precancerous or sometimes cancerous cells; in 2018, MedNorth had to refer 32 gynecological patients to other providers. Acquisition of this equipment will allow completion of the necessary procedure on site. 

Additional autoclave to replace an existing one which is 5 years old and requires frequent service. Adding another autoclave would streamline scheduling and allow more procedures to be performed per day. 

Med North Health Center is a qualified health center providing traditional primary care services, family medicine, pediatrics, prenatal care, women’s health as well as integrated behavioral heal, oral health services, podiatry as well as an on-site pharmacy. We offer a sliding fee discount for all uninsured and underinsured patients, based on income and family size. We also accept Medicaid, Medicare, and most third-party insurances. In 2018, MedNorth provided services for 7,100 individuals. Fifty-seven percent (57%) of those patients had no health insurance coverage and incomes at or below 200% of the poverty level 

MedNorth serves over 7,000 patients annually; over half of those patients had no insurance or incomes below 200% of the poverty level. As a community based health center, they are well positioned to bring improved healthcare in their northside community.