Project HOPE, UnitedHealth Group Launch Connected Care Telehealth Program to Expand Health Care Access in New Mexico

Posted: July 15, 2009

Mobile Clinic Will Provide Health Screenings, With a Focus on Addressing Diabetes Epidemic

Washington, D.C., July 15, 2009

Project HOPE, the international  health education and humanitarian assistance organization, and UnitedHealth   Group [NYSE: UNH] today announced a partnership to bring much-needed health   care services to underserved communities, beginning in New Mexico. The program represents one of the first implementations of UnitedHealth Group’s “Connected   Care,” a new national telehealth network the company launched today.

A Connected Care mobile clinic will help residents in New Mexico obtain health   screenings and treatment. The initiative will help residents with their overall   health issues and will focus on identifying and addressing diabetes and other   chronic diseases associated with a lack of regular primary care.

Since 1958, Project HOPE has worked to deliver sustainable solutions to health   care challenges that affect underserved populations around the world. Partnering   with UnitedHealth Group’s Connected Care is the organization’s first   major, long-term project designed to aid underserved populations in the United   States since the 1990s.

John P. Howe III, M.D., president and chief executive officer of Project HOPE,   said: “HOPE is recognized in the international community as a leader in   developing education programs to address chronic diseases such as diabetes.   We have been seeking the right partner and opportunity to bring HOPE’s   expertise to the United States. This is the perfect partnership to allow HOPE   to play a larger role in improving access to quality health care for all Americans,   starting with the particular needs of rural New Mexicans.”

Stephen J. Hemsley, president and chief executive officer, UnitedHealth Group   said: “Project HOPE’s leadership in community health programs coupled   with our company’s national health care resources will help improve access   to quality care in underserved areas of the U.S. We are eager to work with these   communities in New Mexico and leverage Connected Care to achieve better health   over the long term.”

The program will be available to New Mexico residents across the state, beginning   in the first quarter of 2010 in the southwest (Hidalgo and Doña Ana counties)   and expanding over three years to the central Albuquerque region, as well as   the southeast and north.

Project HOPE and UnitedHealth Group will develop a sustainable model and infrastructure   for primary care treatment and chronic disease management, while also building   the capacity of local community health care centers and their workers to care   for residents. UnitedHealth Group will provide program funding, technology and   technical support to the partnership. Project HOPE will apply its knowledge   and experience implementing health care training programs that address chronic   diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

For example, in the last 10 years, HOPE has trained more than 200,000 health   care workers in China about diabetes prevention and treatment, and last year   HOPE launched a diabetes education program targeted at health care workers in   India. HOPE’s India program recently was recognized by the International   Diabetes Foundation as one of the best diabetes education programs in the world.

Chronic Disease Identification and Management Key Part of Program

Through Connected Care, a mobile clinic will travel to residents and give them   access to physicians and specialists using high-definition videoconferencing   to create an experience remarkably similar to an in-person visit with a doctor.   An on-site nurse also will staff the clinic, and residents’ ongoing health   care needs will be coordinated with community health centers with an ultimate   goal of ensuring patients have a “medical home” to help them stay   healthy.

The program’s chief objective is to help these communities address high   incidences of chronic diseases, particularly type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes.   People of Hispanic or Latino origin – who make up 44 percent of the population   in New Mexico – are more predisposed toward type 2 diabetes than Caucasians.   According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a 2004-2006   study showed 10.4 percent of Hispanics living in the U.S. had been diagnosed   with diabetes, and nationwide another 57 million Americans of all ethnicities   are considered pre-diabetic, with about a fourth of them unaware of their condition.

The Connected Care program in New Mexico will be designed to screen for and   treat diabetes and pre-diabetes and other chronic conditions, such as high blood   pressure and heart disease, and to educate residents about how to manage their   health more effectively.

Program to Build Local Health Care Capacity and Help Achieve Sustainability

HOPE will implement its “Train-the-Trainer” (TOT) programs to build   local health care worker capacity and help improve care quality in these communities   for the long term. HOPE has implemented TOT programs around the world to teach   health care workers how to better address their communities’ most pressing   health crises, from infectious diseases to chronic illnesses. The TOT also emphasizes  teaching health care workers how to teach others, creating a ripple effect that   further expands local health care capacity. Project HOPE has trained more than   two million people worldwide, creating millions of better-trained health care   professionals.

Key partners and collaborators in both the care delivery and training programs   include the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Office for Community   Health (UNM-HSC) and the New Mexico Department of Health; along with multiple   community health centers and other local organizations. UNM will analyze the   Connected Care mobile clinic’s contribution to improved health outcomes   and the results will be used to help inform future programs.

About UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) 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.

About Project HOPE
Founded in 1958, Project HOPE (Health Opportunities for People Everywhere) is   dedicated to providing lasting solutions to health problems with the mission   of helping people to help themselves. Identifiable to many by the SS HOPE, the   world’s first peacetime hospital ship, Project HOPE now provides medical   training and health education, as well as conducts humanitarian assistance programs in more than 35 countries. For more information, please visit www.projecthope.org.