There are many homebound seniors who struggle to get the proper care they need, and we are taking steps to bring services to them.

At the beginning of the pandemic, the County began to provide COVID-19 related services in the unincorporated communities, including COVID-19 tests, COVID-19 vaccinations, and eventually expanded to offer flu vaccinations. Because of the success, I introduced a Board letter to expand this effort to help reach our rural communities with more services and I’m pleased to say it passed. Soon we will be able to connect patients to primary care, conduct post-hospital visits, and expand public health education. Also, County staff will conduct more home visits focused on reducing falls in the home and providing hospice care.

We call it “Community Paramedicine”. By delivering services to those hard-to-reach places, we can eliminate the need to drive or transport patients via ambulance, cut down on hospital readmissions, and most importantly, save lives. I’ll keep you updated with the effort and hopefully, soon we will be able to provide these services to those who need them!