University of New Mexico Hospitals - Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes)
What is it?
This care model, developed by the UNM Health Sciences Center, connects urban medical center disease experts with rural general practitioners and community health representatives over a telehealth network.
Who is it for?
Patients with chronic, common and complex diseases who do not have direct access to specialty health care providers.
Why do they do it?
The program was initially conceived as a means to treat HCV-infected patients in New Mexico’s rural communities and prison system.
Impact
Project ECHO is being field-tested in weekly, regularly scheduled telemedicine clinics hosted by UNM HSC specialists in the areas of hepatitis C. Project ECHO will incorporate community health extension agents to assist primary care physicians in the care of patients.
Contact: Sanjeev Arora, MD
Director, Project ECHO, and Professor of Medicine, UNM Health Sciences Center
Telephone: 505-272-2808
E-mail: sarora@salud.unm.edu