Telehealth Network Grant Program - Santa Cruz County is the smallest, southernmost county in Arizona. The entire county is designated by HRSA as rural and medically underserved. Established in 1980, Mariposa Community Health Center has become the largest provider of primary care, behavioral health, dental care, health promotion and disease prevention in the county. With over 28,800 patients, it serves over half the county population. Since 1991, Mariposa’s Department of Community Health Services has provided nutrition outreach and education using the Community Health Worker (CHW) model. The program was recognized by the National Rural Health Association as the 2014 Outstanding Rural Health Program in the US for its innovative use of CHWs and its many cross-sector partnerships. It was also named the 2019 Outstanding CHW Organization by the Arizona Community Health Outreach Worker Association. The goal of the Mariposa Telehealth Nutrition Services Network project is to increase access to nutrition services for rural, medically underserved community members in Santa Cruz County through the integration of an innovative telehealth system linking screening, referral, treatment, outreach, and education with primary care. Mariposa proposes that its seven rural clinics in Santa Cruz County serve as both originating and distant sites, with an additional distant site in Tucson, Arizona. Mariposa will integrate its nutrition services with primary care, dental care, and behavioral health, whereby providers identify patients with, or at risk for, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, hypertension, and obesity. Originating from Mariposa provider referrals and through community outreach, nutrition services will be multi-faceted, offering a spectrum of nutrition services to meet a patient’s needs. Nutrition services offered by a full-time Registered Dietician include Medical Nutritional Therapy, meal planning, malnutrition, tube feeding, combined dental visits, and group education. A Nutritionist in Care Coordination will serve patients who are overweight, but not obese (BMI 26-29), patients who are pregnant and overweight, and pre-diabetic patients without complications. Community Health Workers offer many evidence-based nutrition education programs and receive referrals from Clinical Pharmacists and Mariposa providers. Remote Patient Monitoring is just one of the telehealth technologies that will be used. Mariposa qualifies for several funding preferences and submits Qualification #1: Community Organization. Mariposa requests $300,000 a year, for a total of $1,500,000 over a five-year project period and proposes that 100% of the funding will serve community members of Santa Cruz County.
