OUR TAXPAYER DOLLARS AT WORK
By: Kelly Sweeney McShane, Executive Director
I, like you, am keeping a close eye on the newspapers to see how funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), also known as “stimulus dollars,” are being invested. I am pleased to share with you that Community of Hope is receiving some of those dollars to help us address the needs of uninsured Americans. And they are flowing quickly and efficiently!
Some of the first funds have gone to healthcare through Federally Qualified Community Health Centers. These Health Centers, like Community of Hope, already have been vetted and approved by the federal government after a national competition, with annual reporting requirements to ensure that we are providing a high quality of care and meeting our goals and objectives.
The Obama Administration announced available grants to meet the Increased Demand for Services (IDS) in March. We had one week to review the grant announcement, come up with a plan, and submit our proposal electronically. Grant awards were announced two weeks later, and funding started on April 1. The goals of the IDS funding are to serve new patients uninsured due to the economy and to hire additional staff. Community of Hope was awarded about $140,000 for two years. Our proposal was to add Wednesday evenings; starting in May, we are now open three evenings a week for medical care. We have hired additional staff for two evenings a week to assist patients with enrollment in benefit programs and plan to hire a part-time therapist to work with families who are homeless. We are tracking how many patients are coming in during these additional hours and will be reporting quarterly on the ARRA website.
As part of a second round of federal funding for a Capital Improvement Program, we sent in a second proposal, due June 2. Community of Hope proposes to use the grant to transition from paper medical charts to electronic ones. We have already transitioned to electronic records in the dental clinic, and have found that it creates a lot of efficiencies in how we provide care. Six other health centers in Washington, DC have moved to electronic health records, all using the same software, and we are hopeful of joining their ranks. The advantages of electronic health records include being able to better coordinate care, track outcomes, help providers offer the highest standard of care possible, and allow more accurate coding to maximize income. If awarded, funds will become available July 1.
I am proud that Community of Hope is doing its part to provide high quality care as well as being a source of employment in these difficult economic times. If you'd like to see your tax dollars at work in person, please call our Development Associate, Whitney Hicks, at (202) 232-7356, ext. 320. Thank you!
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