New system designed to improve delivery of speech and hearing services
ORANGE, Calif. (October X, 2009)- Providence Speech and Hearing Center, a non-profit organization dedicated to enriching life through the gifts of speech and hearing, today announced it has received a $307,000 grant from UnitedHealth Group
Funding from this grant will enable Providence to implement an electronic medical record system, which would result in improved outcomes, both for clinicians and patients. With the new system, Providence expects to improve the patient experience in areas including appointment reminders, registration, insurance management, evidence based medicine and patient education. In addition, the new system is expected to result in improved efficiencies and cost savings that would allow Providence to drastically reduce their current waiting list of more than 1,000 patients, all of whom are children.
"We are honored to be a recipient of this generous grant from UnitedHealth Group," said Linda Smith, CEO. "Providence is the only safety net speech and hearing clinic in Orange County and provides care to the most vulnerable populations. This grant will allow us to implement an electronic medical record system that will greatly reduce our waiting time, allowing us to see even more patients, as well as increase efficiency for our clinical staff."
In 2008, Providence provided services to more than 21,000 people. Approximately 80% of Providence Speech and Hearing Center's work is dedicated to low-income patients who are either uninsured or underinsured
"We applaud Providence Speech and Hearing Center for its ongoing commitment to providing speech and hearing services to needy people in Southern California, and we are pleased to collaborate with them for such a vital initiative," said Steve Nelson, CEO, Western Region of UnitedHealthcare, a UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) company. "Now, more than ever, state-of-the-art health information management systems are critical to improving patient safety and quality."
About Providence Speech and Hearing Center
Founded in 1965, Providence Speech and Hearing Center is the leading service provider to the speech and hearing impaired of Orange County. With over 40 years of experience, it has grown from a one room house to a multi-million dollar non-profit organization. Providence served over 21,000 appointments in 2008 to over 3,200 unique patients. It offers a full array of speech and hearing services for children and adults alike; and, because it believes everyone deserves the gifts of speech and hearing, it accepts most major insurance companies and medical groups as well as providing grants, scholarships and financing options for patients from low-income families. Please visit www.psch.org for additional information.
About UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group (www.unitedhealthgroup.com) is a diversified health and well-being company dedicated to making health care work better. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., UnitedHealth Group offers a broad spectrum of products and services through six operating businesses: UnitedHealthcare, Ovations, AmeriChoice, OptumHealth, Ingenix, and Prescription Solutions. Through its family of businesses, UnitedHealth Group serves more than 70 million individuals nationwide
