By Bill Carey
EMS1
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Missouri EMS Association (MEMSA) has received $1.5 million from the Patterson Family Foundation to establish mobile integrated healthcare (MIH) networks in Missouri and Kansas.
MIH enables community paramedics to provide primary and behavioral health support at home, acting as physician extenders.
MEMSA, alongside partners, is launching MIH networks in six communities across Missouri (Caldwell, Carroll and Ray counties) and Kansas (Dickinson, Franklin and Kingman counties). Each network includes a multidisciplinary team delivering integrated physical and behavioral healthcare, according to a MEMSA statement.
The networks will receive training and support to ensure quality improvement and track outcomes, focusing on social health drivers like housing, employment, transportation and food security, MEMSA said.
The networks offer emergency care until an ambulance arrives and perform clinical tasks like lab tests, intubation and vaccinations, along with community health services. MIH clinicians connect patients to healthcare providers via telehealth and ultimately to a primary care medical home for ongoing, integrated care.
“MIH is revolutionizing the way healthcare delivery occurs in rural, underserved areas. It provides diverse, inclusive, whole-person care outside the ‘bricks and mortar’ setting in the right place at the right time – saving healthcare resources that can be directed elsewhere,” MEMSA President Justin Duncan said. “We are excited to collaborate with our neighbors in Kansas to explore new and innovative ways to meet the needs of our communities, thanks to funding from the Patterson Family Foundation. While our geography and populations may be different, our communities are all burdened with barriers to healthcare access.”
MEMSA, Missouri’s nonprofit EMS association, supports EMS professionals and agencies, advocating at regional, state and national levels. MEMSA’s mission is to enhance paramedicine quality in Missouri, guided by values of collaboration, professionalism, and transparency.
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