The Centralized Follow-up Program was developed as a part of the Care Coordination Team at Planned Parenthood of Central and Western New York. Recognizing that over 60% of our patients tell us we are their only health care provider, this team was created to ensure our patients have continuity of care. This coordination is important to ensure high quality and cost-effective care that improve our patients’ health and lives.
Some examples of health issues we see in our clinics are:
- a patient comes in for birth control, but their blood pressure is high,
- a patient has been prescribed gender affirming hormonal medications but their pharmacy doesn’t carry the formulation of the medication they need,
- or a patient who had a cervical cytology screening (formerly known as a “Pap test”) had a positive result.
This team reviews all test results and problems that were found during patients’ clinic visits which need additional care or referral to other health providers. They then contact patients to make sure they get that follow-up care. The Centralized Follow-up Team also fields medical questions from patients, pharmacies, and other health care providers.
The services given by the Centralized Follow-up Team are vital to patients and allow the in-clinic staff to do their jobs efficiently and without distraction. However, these crucial services are not reimbursed by Medicaid or any other health insurance payers. It is your unrestricted donations that allow us to keep these meaningful, life-changing services going.