AACN APPLAUDS "MODELS THAT WORK"
WINNERS
Nurse-Managed Centers in Philadelphia,
Chicago Health Corps Cited for Extending Vital Primary
Care to Underserved Communities
WASHINGTON, D.C., November 25, 1996 -- As
a strong co-sponsor of the federal "Models that Work" initiative,
the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) congratulates
this year's winning programs that are making a tangible
difference in bringing high-quality, accessible, and affordable
health care to their own and to other communities nationwide.
"The programs identified by 'Models
that Work' are concrete successes at bringing vital care
to those who have been hardest to reach -- America's underserved
and uninsured," says AACN President Carole A. Anderson,
PhD, RN, FAAN. "Rather than developing and funding new programs
from Washington, 'Models that Work' finds and spreads the
word about local programs that have proven success at improving
not only the health of citizens but also the health of local
economies through health-care cost savings and creation
of needed jobs."
"We are especially proud to congratulate
the achievements of two outstanding initiatives showcased
by 'Models that Work' this year," Dr. Anderson says. These
programs are Philadelphia's Abbottsford and Schuylkill Falls
Community Health Centers, staffed by nurse practitioner
faculty from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
and one of five top winners in the 1996 'Models that Work'
competition, and the family of primary health care and health
education services provided by the Chicago Health Corps,
a project of the College of Nursing at the University of
Illinois at Chicago (UIC), and a special "Models that Work"
honoree this year.
"Models that Work" programs are community-based
and address a diversity of health concerns, such as primary
and mental health care, early detection of disease, and
prevention of substance abuse and violence. Though often
beginning as grass-roots efforts, most "Models that Work"
programs attract support of hospitals, banks, universities,
and other institutions.
The hallmark of the campaign, administered
by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is
its targeting of programs that can be replicated in other
communities. Indeed, through its technical assistance, "Models
that Work" already has contributed directly to replications
in half a dozen states, according to HRSA figures.
Problems of access, soaring costs, the expanding
focus of hospitals on acute care, and decades of orientation
toward treatment rather than prevention and wellness have
left many pressing health needs either underserved or unmet.
"The result has been a health system that often has fallen
short of its name by merely delivering more health care,
not necessarily the most systematic or accessible care possible,"
Dr. Anderson explains. Among the greatest needs has been
expanded front-line, primary health care in both urban and
rural communities, and to have more health services delivered
at convenient sites such as schools, workplaces, and homes.
One such effort is the nurse-managed program
at the Abbottsford and Schuylkill Falls Community Health
Centers. Located on-site in two of Philadelphia's public
housing projects, the program delivers a combination of
health care and help with many underlying health and social
problems.
Among its services, the two centers provide
primary health care, prenatal care, community nurse home
visits, group health education, parenting and grandparenting
support and education, mental health services, violence
prevention, and drug and alcohol treatment. Services are
provided by nurse practitioners, three of whom serve jointly
as faculty at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing.
Physicians are available for telephone consultation and
visit the centers monthly. In addition to Penn's School
of Nursing, other backers include managed care firms, specialty
providers, and a physicians' association.
Since beginning in 1992, the centers have
provided primary care to more than half of the projects'
4,200 residents, cut the rate of underweight newborns from
13.6 percent to less than 2 percent, and cut the inappropriate
use of emergency rooms from once-excessive levels to markedly
below-average levels.
An expanding array of community settings,
including public housing, reflect the uniqueness of clinical
experiences for undergraduate nursing students. In fall
1994, seven schools of nursing reported adding public housing
to the community-based sites used for clinical training
of students in bachelor's-degree nursing programs, according
to an AACN survey.
Begun in 1994, the Chicago Health Corps
is an AmeriCorps USA program established by the Corporation
for National Service in partnership with HRSA. The effort
is directed jointly by the Illinois Area Health Education
Centers and the UIC College of Nursing and staffed by AmeriCorps
members from health professions schools and the community.
Each year, Health Corps members in selected communities
provide underserved families in Chicago with primary health
care, health education, and case management services at
31 sites around the city, as well as home visits. Among
its benefits to date, the Health Corps has provided more
than 13,000 individuals in schools, after-school clubs,
and community health centers with services to increase capacity
for self-care and has successfully encouraged 44 of 47 community-resident
volunteers to pursue training in health care careers.
The American Association of Colleges
of Nursing is the national voice for university and four-year-college
education programs in nursing. Representing more than 580
member schools of nursing at public and private institutions
nationwide, AACN's educational, research, governmental advocacy,
data collection, publications, and other programs work to
establish quality standards for bachelor's- and graduate-degree
nursing education, assist deans and directors to implement
those standards, influence the nursing profession to improve
health care, and promote public support of baccalaureate
and graduate nursing education, research, and practice.
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CONTACT: Robert Rosseter
(202) 463-6930, x231
rrosseter@aacn.nche.edu
