Nov 13, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Centura Health Contact:
Wendi Dammann, wendidammann@centura.org
Director, External Affairs
(303) 267-9170 (office)
• Residents in and around Del Norte will have access to innovative telehealth services
• Connected Care will improve access to health care services, making it easier and more convenient for patients in these areas to see the doctors they need
Englewood, Colo. (Nov. 13, 2009) – Centura Health, Colorado’s largest health care network, and UnitedHealthcare, a UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) company, has announced the fourth Connected Care program site in Del Norte, Colo.
Connected Care links patients with physicians and medical specialists located hundreds of miles away, using advanced audio and video technologies and health resources to create an experience remarkably similar to an in-person doctor visit.
Starting in early 2010, Connected Care clinics will be established at the following medical facilities in rural Colorado:
• Rio Grand Hospital in Del Norte
• Buena Vista Family Practice in Buena Vista
• High Plains Community Health Center in Lamar
• St. Vincent General Hospital in Leadville
The aforementioned locations are the first in a series of Connected Care sites to be established in Colorado at federally qualified community health centers, critical access hospitals, rural health clinics or Centura Health entities. In the future, the technology may be implemented in retail and workplace locations and, eventually, homes.
The sites will improve patient access to medical specialties in rural areas that are either not currently available or only available on a part-time basis. These are likely to include Cardiology, Dermatology, Pulmonology, Diabetes Management and Ear Nose and Throat (ENT), among others.
More details on the Connected Care program, and its collaboration in Colorado, can be found at www.ConnectedCareAmerica.com.
About Centura Health
Centura Health is Colorado’s largest hospital and health care network and we are charting the course for the future of health care. Approximately 13,000 of the health care industry’s best and brightest deliver advanced care to more than half a million people each year, across 12 hospitals, seven senior living communities, medical clinics, Flight For Life® Colorado and home care and hospice services. Our strength lies in our ability to offer a team of connected networks and shared resources to deliver accessible, reliable and cost-effective health care across the state. For information on Centura Health or any of the facilities in our network, please visit www.centura.org.
About UnitedHealthcare
UnitedHealthcare (www.unitedhealthcare.com) provides a full spectrum of consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services to individuals, public sector employers and businesses of all sizes, including more than half of the Fortune 100 companies. The company organizes access to quality, affordable health care services on behalf of more than 25 million individual consumers, contracting directly with approximately 590,000 physicians and care professionals and more than 4,900 hospitals to offer them broad, convenient access to services nationwide. UnitedHealthcare is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), a diversified Fortune 50 health and well-being company.
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