Strengthening access to care and community support in rural Kentucky

April 1, 2024

Video

Greater access to care in a rural community

Video transcript

Instrumental music plays throughout. White text appears over a blue background in the lower left of the screen.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Paintsville, Kentucky.

A montage shows different areas of Paintsville. Then a view of the Big Sandy Health Care, Inc office. Lesley Dotson interviews in the clinic. White text appears over a blue background in the lower left of the screen.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Lesley Dotson, MD, MB

Chief Medical Officer, Big Sandy Health Care

LESLEY: This clinic has been a long time coming. Putting a clinic in Johnson County is something that we've talked about at Big Sandy Healthcare for many years.

A montage shows different areas of Paintsville. Lesley continues speaking.

LESLEY: We live in an area of Appalachia where people suffer from chronic diseases at higher-than-average rates. So not only are… The people face these higher incidence of disease, but they also face a number of barriers that prevent them from getting the care that they need.

Kelli Pratt interviews in the clinic. White text appears over a blue background in the lower left of the screen. A montage shows different areas of the clinic.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Kelli Pratt, DO

Clinic Director, Big Sandy Health Care

KELLI: You not only need to, as you say, treat the disease, but you have to treat the patient, you know. Everything from mental health to someone with hypertension, diabetes, there's just lots of different factors that need to be addressed. And I feel confident that this clinic will be able to help the people in Eastern Kentucky.

White text appears over a translucent blue background with a photo of the clinic in the very background.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Big Sandy Health Care opened the Johnson County Community Health Center to better serve the needs of patients in eastern Kentucky, thanks to funding from UnitedHealthcare.

The text disappears and Krista Brinly Hensel interviews in the clinic. White text appears over a blue background in the lower left of the screen.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Krista Brinly Hensel

CEO, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Kentucky

KRISTA: It's about the whole person. We know that 80% of what dictates somebody's health outcomes has nothing to do with actually what happens in the provider's office.

A montage shows different areas of the clinic. Krista continues speaking.

KRISTA: Now, there's no doubt that what happens between a patient and provider is critical. But so is housing, and food, and nutrition, and exercise. And that takes a whole community to support a member. We are excited that there will be holistic care, primary-based care here in Johnson County, easily accessible for our members and the community at large.

Dean Shofner interviews in the clinic. White text appears over a blue background in the lower left of the screen.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Dean Shofner

CEO of Big Sandy Health Care

DEAN: What we can do is keep you out of the emergency room. And you maybe can get better, get your medicines here, whatever you need, dental care, on a local basis.

Nathaniel Dials interviews in the clinic. White text appears over a blue background in the lower left of the screen.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Nathaniel Dials, M.Ed.

Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor,

Big Sandy Health Care

NATHANIEL: Values matter. Where you come from matters. And my hope is, with this clinic, people will see that we honor those values. And we have the utmost respect for people's journey and what's brought them to our door.

A montage shows the clinic and Nathaniel interviewing. Nathaniel continues speaking.

NATHANIEL: And I think once people understand that you respect them, then true service can begin.

The video shows the clinic employees in a ribbon cutting ceremony. The screen then dissolves to a blue U with three lines over a white background. Blue text appears on the screen as the music fades out.

ONSCREEN TEXT: United

Healthcare

Eastern Kentucky is a region with a rich culture and beautiful landscape, and Johnson County is no exception. However, while the economy has been traditionally buoyed by the coal industry, Johnson County has a 26% poverty rate, and a premature death rate that has been steadily increasing in the 21^st century. What’s more, the lack of access to care close by in rural areas has sometimes meant long drives – sometimes for hours – in order to receive primary care, or just to see a dentist.

In Paintsville, Kentucky, the Johnson County Community Health Center is hoping to increase that access. Launched by Big Sandy Health Care – and with an investment of $500,000 by the UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Kentucky – the Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) provides a broad array of health care services for a drastically underserved area.

Lesley Dotson is a family physician who is Chief Medical Officer for Big Sandy Health Care.

“I've practiced here for about 13 years,” she said. “And I see firsthand some of the barriers that my patients face. They have to make some very difficult decisions every month, whether they're going to purchase their groceries or whether they're going to purchase their prescription medications.”

FQHCs are well-equipped to address these gaps in care. In 2023, 1 in 11 Americans received care at FQHCs – 41% of whom are rural residents. Because of their holistic vision centered in community, they can provide a wide-range of interconnected care; not only primary care but also:

Dental care
Behavioral health care
Help with social drivers of health such as food, housing, transportation and more

“The Big Sandy team has really led the way in terms of patient-centered medical home care – not just primary care, but behavioral health, dental and nutritionists,” said Krista Brinly Hensel, CEO of the UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Kentucky. “And we're really excited to see what they do here in Johnson County collaborating with other community-based organizations that have been doing amazing work in this county.”

Although there is adversity in terms of health care access and social drivers of health in the area, the people of Eastern Kentucky continue to be resilient, creative and hopeful for the changes ahead. In the years to come, the Johnson County Community Health Center can be one more piece of the health care mosaic for this region.

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