MAKING A DIFFERENCE : Hospital Without Walls: Moving Health Care into the Community
Preventative care is critical to keeping health care costs down. But financial, cultural and language barriers often discourage the very people who need such services from getting attention before they end up in costly emergency rooms. To remedy this situation, Queen of Angels-Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in February, 1993, formed and financed a coalition with nearby churches and organizations. The result is the Greater Hollywood Health Partnership, which brings medical services to people at churches, senior centers and day-care operations. Volunteers from each organization form a “Health Cabinet” to assess what services are needed and plan events to reach their group’s membership. Today the network has 21 congregational and agency members and serves more than 30,000 adults, children and seniors in Hollywood. The partnership has been so successful that the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services Public Health Programs this spring declared it a model for delivering health education and preventive services. In addition, the partnership is working with county officials and churches in other parts of Los Angeles including South-Central to create a similar program.
Who Goes to the Hospital
Of 108,091 hospital visits in 1993:
Hispanic: 54%
White: 26%*
Asian: 11%
African-American: 9%
*at least 50% of this population estimated to be Armenian
How They Pay
Medi-Cal: 50%
Medicare: 38%
Private insurers: 6%
Other: 6%
Source: Queen of Angels-Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center
WAYS THE PARTNERSHIP HELPS
Health educators offer Armenian-language nutrition workshops after worship services on what constitutes a balanced diet and how to read food labels.
Bilingual nurses and staff visit churches and their day-care programs to provide health information in Spanish as well as checkups for the children and their parents.
Free flu shots are made available to seniors who come to hot lunch or social programs.
Physicians attend church health fairs to do examinations and make referrals for specialized care.
Nurses provide home health care visits for congregation’s sick, frail or housebound members.
ADDED BENEFITS
Creates a permanent structure for linking local health care needs with a care provider and for monitoring shifts in medical needs at a community level
Promotes cooperation and contact between diverse ethnic and religious groups
Educates community about availability and appropriate use of local routine and emergency health services
PARTNERS IN HEALTH
Queen of Angels-Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center
1. Angelus Temple
2. Bethany Lutheran Church
3. Chang Chuyn Presbyterian Church
4. Church of the Blessed Sacrament
5. First Lutheran Church
6. First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood
7. Full Grace Baptist Church
8. Hollywood Beverly Christian Church
9. Hollywood Korean Church
10. Hollywood Lutheran Church
11. Hollywood Senior Multipurpose Center
12. Hollywood United Methodist Church
13. Hope Lutheran Church
14. Immaculate Heart of Mary Church
15. Immanuel Presbyterian Church
16. Light of the Christian Church
17. Mother of Good Counsel
18. Mount Hollywood Congregational Church
20. Precious Blood Church
21. South Hollywood Presbyterian Church
22. St. John’s Armenian Cathedral
TO GET INVOLVED
To find out about volunteering or to learn more about forming a partnership with the Greater Hollywood Health Partnership, call (213) 913-4978. To offer donations or other support, call (213) 913-4908.