St. Vincent Charity Hospital is using the medical home model to improve access to health care. The medical home housed within the Health Clinic has begun to address the issue for those patients whose first contact with health care is typically the emergency department. But regardless of the patient’s entry point into the health care setting, a medical home is a best practice; it takes a team approach to primary care and puts the patient at the center of that team.  It is prevention and wellness focused, and access to a medical home can reduce the risk that a medical problem gets worse and requires a hospital visit.

In the first year, St. Vincent Charity Hospital's program has already seen improvement in access and self-management of chronic conditions. The Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland, an early funder of the program, was interested in seeing an initiative that would give more people in the Central neighborhood community coordinated primary care, provide a standard for quality care and change habits enough to positively impact individual health outcomes.

Dr. Srinivas Merugu, medical director for St. Vincent Charity Hospital patient-centered medical home, is an advocate for the medical home model, and is accepting patients. For more patient information, call (216) 658-8510.

Dr. Srinivas Merugu, Medical Home medical director for St. Vincent Charity Hospital