The Road to Recovery Through Team-Based Care
Sometimes, all you need is a little support behind you. Thanks to the Patient Care Fund, our team is able to provide that and more. Below, watch truck driver Paul’s story and hear about how our team helped him get back behind the wheel.
After a standard biennial physical revealed extremely high blood pressure, truck driver Paul Williamson lost his Commercial Driver's License and found himself out of a job.
“I felt stripped and there was nothing I could do about it,” he recalls.
Paul needed to get back to work, so he came to Cone Health’s Heart and Vascular Center for help. This was the first step in Paul’s healing journey, and his journey to get back on the road.
Tests revealed that Paul had heart problems (specifically atrial fibrillation) and sleep apnea. As Cone Health got to know Paul, a motivational interview revealed something else: In addition to his health issues, the inability to afford a working cell phone and the prescribed CPAP machine were affecting his ability to work, impeding both his professional development and his healing journey.
For Paul, a working phone would ensure he could stay in contact with his doctors — and a CPAP machine would allow him to rest. Cone Health can address these critical components because of our whole-person approach to health care, which includes:
Motivational interviewing, during which a certified medical assistant (CMA) discusses the patient’s needs and barriers to care. During this deep dive, any hardships a patient may face — financial, professional, familial, etc. — come to light.
An innovative, team-based support model, in which providers from a variety of disciplines (including the patient's physicians and a certified social worker) come together to create a plan of action designed to combat any roadblocks to care.
The Patient Care Fund, which provides the necessary support to help patients overcome barriers. Originally started by Cone Health physicians, the Patient Care Fund has provided patients in need with all sorts of aid, ranging from covering bills to purchasing medical equipment.
Chantal Jeffries, a CMA at Cone Health, is one of those trained in motivational interviewing. “The training I’ve received makes me feel like I can really reach my patient and solve a challenge we might not have otherwise known existed,” she says.
Leveraging what Chantal learned and utilizing the Patient Care Fund, Cone Health was able to provide Paul with both a cell phone and CPAP machine.
“The care navigation model is about a multidisciplinary team working collaboratively to help a patient through their illness,” says Jackie Brennan, Cone Health social worker.
“Addressing the social determinants of health and eliminating some of the barriers that prevent patients from their recovery process ensures that we get them on the road to recovery.”
As for Paul, thanks to the Patient Care Fund, things are looking up.
