MEDIA RELEASE
In January 2015, The Coordinating Center began using Care at Hand, a mobile technology to capture and analyze observations for a hospital readmission reduction program. The Coordinating Center has been working with three West Baltimore hospitals and their fee for service Medicare beneficiaries—Bon Secours Hospital, University of Maryland Main Campus and University of Maryland Midtown Campus—to reduce the readmission rates of individuals with chronic illnesses.
The Coordinating Center was mentioned in the April 21st article titled “A Boston startup says it will disrupt Maryland health care” published in the Washington Business Journal.
During home visits our health coaches, who have an associate or bachelor’s degree in health/human services and experience in care transitions, use Care at Hand to track an individual’s progress and provide alerts to our Nurse Care Coordinator when additional follow up may be needed.
“The Care at Hand tablet has improved timely and pertinent communication between our health coaches in the field and our Nurse Care Coordinator. This benefits the people we serve who are at high risk for readmission. At an organizational level, the technology promotes and optimizes the use of the right skills at the right time,” said Carol Marsiglia, Senior Vice President, Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships.
Between November 2013 and October 2014, 2,828 individuals were enrolled in the program, saving the three West Baltimore hospitals $2,676,259 in avoided rehospitalizations.
