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(LANTANA, FLORIDA) January 19, 2011 – 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast is partnering with Ascension Health to begin providing comprehensive health navigation services to help people more easily find and use available community healthcare resources by calling 2-1-1. Working with community organizations and health service providers, specially trained multilingual Health Navigators will assess callers’ health needs, screen for and enroll them in benefits programs, schedule their medical appointments, assist them with getting any needed prescriptions, and provide follow-up services. The service will begin on January 24.

“There is an overwhelming need for a dependable service to assist people in navigating the complex healthcare system. 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast already connects callers to essential services in the community, so this expanded service is a natural fit for our organization,” said Susan Buza, Executive Director of 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast.

Ascension Health, the largest Catholic and non-profit healthcare system in the U.S., also is supporting similar pilot projects in San Diego and Flint, Mich., which will allow for the sharing of lessons learned across the sites. The goal of the project is to help improve the health of individuals and communities by expanding the role of 211 call centers so they can serve as an entry point for health navigation, thereby increasing people’s access to healthcare and the appropriate use of healthcare facilities and services.

“Ascension Health is excited about the opportunity to work with 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast to develop a model to expand access to healthcare, with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable,” said John Doyle, Ascension Health Chief Strategy Officer and General Manager, Transformational Development

“As the pilot unfolds and we apply what we learn to refine this approach, which puts the person at the center of their own healthcare, we hope it may become a model that can be replicated nationally.”

While 211 will serve anyone in Palm Beach County with a health-related need, there is a special focus in the Health Navigation project on those who are uninsured and low-income population in the Lantana/Lake Worth/Palm Springs area. 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast also has received a $10,000 grant from the Quantum Foundation to assist with marketing of the new service.

There are more than 244,000 uninsured individuals in Palm Beach County, and in 2010, 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast served over 160,000 people by connecting them with appropriate resources in their community. “This project helps fill a critical role by not only connecting individuals with resources to help them meet their immediate healthcare needs, but also to ensure their healthcare encounter has a better chance of producing positive, long-term results in their lives,” said Buza.

211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast (www.211palmbeach.org) is celebrating its fortieth year of providing a team of specially trained paid and volunteer staff to assist callers with crisis intervention, information, assessment and referral to community services, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 

Ascension Health (www.ascensionhealth.org) is transforming healthcare by providing the highest quality care to all, with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable. Ascension Health, which provided $1.1 billion in care of persons who are poor and community benefit last year, is the nation’s largest Catholic and nonprofit health system. Its Mission-focused Health Ministries employ 113,000 associates serving in more than 500 locations in 20 states and the District of Columbia.

To access our new 211 "Health Navigator" simply dial 2-1-1.