Time: 8:30-10:00 am
Location: https://meet.google.com/ync-eext-bjw
Admission: Free
This month we return to a common theme, the ability of technology and innovation to address the social determinants of health, in general, but also in the time ofCOVID-19. In particular, we will look at ways to address isolation and access to services through transportation. Tangentially, we will also consider developments in the area of keeping appointments.
Our first presenter is Josh Powers, Business Liaison with the County Manager’s Office of the Johnson County (KS) Government. Josh is the contract administrator and regional transit liaison between Johnson County and the Kansas City Area Transit Authority (KCATA). He addresses the understanding that existing transportation gaps in access to services, plus the new pressures of theCOVID-19 environment, call for communities to rethink their traditional reliance on fixed public transportation routes. They must now consider flexible routes and an on-demand mind-frame. Much of the work is data-driven and he currently focuses on healthcare access and reducing unnecessary emergency room visits by providing transportation to maintenance healthcare visits and trackingthose outcomes.
In our second presentation, Rachel Ohlhausen, Program Operations Manager at Jewish Family Services of Greater Kansas City (JFS), will discuss the power of two transportation programs managed by JFS. The first was founded by JFS and is focused on helping to break down the isolation felt by senior citizens who can no longer drive. JFS’s success with this volunteer-driver-based program led to JFS contracting with the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) for a second program, Lyft Concierge, in which JFS’s call center helps to coordinate transportation for a set of clients in-need as identified by MARC. Time permitting, Rachel also will be able to discuss another technology-enabled program they are extending to a trial group of isolated seniors – easy-to-use tablets with access to the internet and useful applications.
Capping off this month’s proceedings will be Dr. Shelley Cooper, founder of Diversity Telehealth, who has formed a team to use telehealth to address an ongoing problem exacerbated by COVID-19 (and sometimes related to transportation): No-shows for health appointments. The SureShow application allows provider organizations to fill no-show slots and diminish the revenue loss and negative impacts on reporting measures associated with unfilled time.
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