Community Paramedicine

The UVA Health Community Paramedicine (CP) program, provided through the Population Health Department, represents an expanded role for community paramedics to interact with patients outside the traditional healthcare system. The program aims to improve patients' health outcomes by connecting them with resources and education. Patient populations are identified using a data-driven approach to focus on those at increased risk for their outpatient healthcare plan failure.

Patients are identified through the inpatient and emergency room discharge planning process and frequent community emergency services systems utilization.

The goals of the CP program are to identify challenges in healthcare strategies through visits with patients in the community to facilitate the successful completion of existing healthcare plans and to identify novel and unrecognized opportunities for health improvements by assisting patients in accessing resources. The CP program is not designed to duplicate existing resources in the community but rather to develop expertise in the interaction with and assessment of patients and to facilitate the ability of patients to access appropriate care resources and services to become successful in achieving their healthcare goals. 

Paramedic teams deploy to a patient's residence or location to intervene, provide care, if appropriate, and prevent the next such event, including a non-emergent ED visit, hospital admission, or readmission.

The CP program includes enrollment in other Population Health programs to connect patients with PCPs and/or clinical specialists, schedule appointments, pharmacy consults, and medication reviews, complete the PHQ and SDOH survey tools with associated resources to remove barriers to healthcare, access behavioral health care sessions, health literacy education, and more, depending on patient needs.