For immediate release:
Sept. 22, 2016

Contact:
Maria Thomas,
Communications Coordinator
mariathomas@trucare.org

LAFAYETTE, CO – TRU Community Care – founded in 1976 as the first hospice in Colorado – is pleased to announce it has been awarded $100,000 in grant funding by the Colorado Health Foundation to increase access to primary care services for elderly individuals through telehealth.

The grant will be used to extend the ability to monitor and assess patients between physician and home health visits for those with chronic diseases in TRU’s new PACE program (Program for All-Inclusive Care of the Elderly). Telehealth includes equipment, connectivity, clinician consultations via electronic communications, monitoring of vital signs, and other symptoms related to chronic disease.

As a result of the grant funding, there will be increased access to primary care services for patients with chronic conditions and reduced isolation for seniors in our community. The telehealth tools will allow clinicians and others to proactively, rather than reactively, manage patients with chronic conditions, with the goal of keeping patients healthier, living independently, and reducing unnecessary emergency department visits and hospitalizations.

TRU PACE is scheduled to open in early 2017, and is the first time this program will be offered in Boulder and southwest Weld Counties and beyond. Once PACE is open, the goal is to enroll at least 200 seniors in the first year who can benefit from TRU’s continuum of care model for years, as oppose to months. PACE participants will have access to a primary care physician, health condition specialists, nutrition, group activities, physical therapy and more – all in one convenient location. The goal of the program is to keep seniors in their home, increasing the quality of life for this ever-expanding population.

TRU Community Care serves Boulder, Louisville, Lafayette, Broomfield, Erie and beyond. TRU Hospice of Northern Colorado offers services in Greeley and extends to Weld and Larimer counties. Additional services include grief support, which is available to anyone in the community free of charge. It is a privilege for us to help those who are grieving regain their balance and resume healthy living. Grief groups include adult, teen and child as well as equine therapy. At TRU Community Care, we add life to days, because that’s what TRUly matters. The sooner you call, the sooner we can help – 303.442.0961 or visit trucare.org.

The Colorado Health Foundation works to make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation by ensuring that all Colorado kids are fit and healthy and that all Coloradans achieve stable, affordable and adequate health coverage to improve their health with support from a network of primary health care and community services. To advance our mission, the Foundation engages the community through grantmaking, public policy, investing in evaluation, private sector partnerships and strategic communications. For more information, please visit www.ColoradoHealth.org.