Captain Obvious FTW
The University of Chicago just proved something obvious that healthcare refuses to admit. People don’t overuse emergency rooms. They underuse everything else. The system traps them there because it’s the only door left unlocked.
A pilot program called the Medical Home and Specialty Care Connection assigned patient advocates to meet people right in the ER and guide them toward real care—primary doctors, specialists, insurance, food, housing help.
The result: a 45 percent drop in repeat nonemergency ER visits. That’s 1,050 fewer trips a year. Over nine years, the hospital saved close to three million dollars.
Think about that. A handful of trained humans who actually listen and connect the dots accomplished what billions in electronic records, billing platforms, and policy experiments never did. One person with a phone and empathy did more for efficiency than an entire CMS task force.
Uninsured patients saw the biggest benefit, which says everything about how broken the system is. The people with the least access get punished the hardest. The people who finally get a lifeline use the ER less because they finally have someone to call. Medicare patients benefited the least because they live in the deepest bureaucracy. The math tracks.
The study calls it “cost neutral.” Translation: it saved lives and money but we’ll pretend it’s a wash so no one in finance gets upset. The real headline should be that human connection beats administrative chaos every single time.
The lesson isn’t about efficiency. It’s about decency. Patient advocates shouldn’t be a pilot program. They should be part of the bloodstream of healthcare.
If this hits home, toss it a like, a repost, comment, or tag someone you may be ambivalent about. One click makes a bigger difference than you think.
Are you new here? First off, my condolences. But welcome. Glad you found me. Stick around, hit follow, and help me get to 100,000 by year’s end. The more of us here, the harder we are to ignore.
SOURCE ➡️ https://www.newswise.com/articles/patient-advocate-program-reduces-repeat-er-visits