Sneak peak at Project Access NOW outcomes
When we started accepting patients in March 2008 we leveraged $7.86 for each dollar spent, and the cost per enrollment was $501, We were thrilled about the 786% return on community investment, but we knew we could do better. And we have, indeed: at the recent close of the 2009-2010 fiscal year, we increased the return on community investment to 1,766% and lowered the cost per enrollment to $281.
We’re very proud of our progress. It indicates the real value of Project Access NOW is not only in direct service coordination, but especially in how much we can leverage through collaboration and volunteers. It’s less a reflection on what we do and more on how we do it.
It’s also a compliment to and celebration of all of our partners, particularly United Way of the Columbia-Willamette. We’re really grateful for the strategic partnership with United Way, which has provided us with stable funding and created a tremendous fit between their vision and our work. With the unknowns of the healthcare reform, we look forward to expanding our partnership with United Way as we continue to build infrastructure and provide services for the health of our community.
In addition to the improvements in financial efficiencies, we’ve helped our low-income uninsured patients improve their health outcomes. For example, visits to the emergency room decreased by 20% during enrollment in Project Access NOW, as compared to visits prior to enrollment; and patients reported an average 15% improvement in their self-reported health ranking, in good to excellent categories.
These and many more outcomes appear in our first full Program Outcomes Evaluation, which we look forward to reporting on in September. Until then, thank you for your continued support!
Sincerely,
Linda Nilsen-Solares
(August 2010)
