By Lois Thomson
Camillus Health Concern, Inc. (CHC) is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in Miami, Florida, that provides primary care, behavioral health, oral health, and social services to men, women, and children experiencing homelessness in Miami-Dade County. The organization’s job just got a little more far-reaching with recent funding from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) COVID-19 Telehealth Program in the amount of $983,464.91. The FCC’s program supports health care providers by funding their efforts to provide care to their patients via telecommunications services, information services, and connected devices.
CHC is looking to use the funding to capitalize on the success of their Telehealth Outreach Pilot Program (TOPP) and expand their telehealth offerings by providing a targeted patient subset with connected smartphones, along with peripheral devices such as wireless blood pressure monitors and wireless glucometers. To support the expanded scope in operations, CHC will look to shift to a new, enhanced telehealth platform, increase their broadband capabilities and equip their providers with new hardware.
Michael Zantua, Director of Business Strategy & Operations, led the team that submitted the proposal for the FCC funding, and he explained how the funds will be used: “What this grant will do is take (the service) to the next level. Not only are we looking to provide phones, but also items like blood pressure cuffs and glucometers, in order to try to focus in on high-risk patients who have hypertension, are diabetic, or are even suffering from COVID.”
Zantua is especially pleased with the outcome because it was his first major project after joining CHC. He said a few days after being hired back in February, “Francis (Afram-Gyening, CEO) asked me to ‘quarterback’ the application for the funding. Securing this funding was a team effort all the way.
“This is a big win for the organization, the funding will go a long way to bridge those gaps and access to care; so we’re really happy that we have been able to secure funding to impact the lives of the patients we serve, but also to extend our telehealth platforms and take it to next level.”
For more information, call (305) 577-4840 or visit www.camillusHEALTH.org.
