Investing in Access to Telehealth
Genesis Health Services is a nonprofit healthcare provider offering affordable and quality health, dental, and behavioral services to families. Most patients are unable to afford private health insurance or the deductible cost, yet their annual income does not qualify them for any government assistance.
Many patients seeking treatment during the height of COVID-19 ran into issues with the availability of in-person appointments or feared coming into the office.
The waiting times were often too long, as the staff was largely overwhelmed by demand.
It was time to launch Genesis Electronic Telehealth (GET), but start up funding was needed to get the program off the ground.
Manatee Community Foundation was proud to award a grant through the COVID-19 Community Response Fund, possible through generous donors. It paved the way to support staff salaries, marketing (social media and print), for outreach, technology support for the Telehealth platform, and electronic and digital x-ray equipment.
Patients readily accepted and utilized their telehealth options instead of office visits.
The funding included a 100% reduction of exposure risk to the staff and other patients of Genesis Health whenever the patient used the telehealth portal.
More than 530 Manatee County residents were served by the GET initiative, most of whom were African American or Latinx. Twenty percent of telehealth patients were established patients at other practices that had to close due to COVID-19 and did not offer telehealth services.
We thank those who have actively supported our community during this time. As we focus on thriving and success, access to health care remains of utmost importance to all.
