A local community health center has identified many
uninsured patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease of various
degrees of severity. Although the community has a hospital based pulmonary
rehabilitation program, many insured patients are not eligible and the uninsured
cannot afford the fee-for-service charges. A community respiratory therapist
who volunteers with the Community Health Center has suggested that they develop
an interdisciplinary team to provide group care for their patients with COPD.
The goals for the program are:

– Establish baseline clinical and quality of life measures
for the participants.

– Involve various healthcare professionals to assure optimal
health status for the individuals

– Decrease the participants’ use of the local emergency room
and reduce hospitalizations over a twelve month interval.

Write a 3-page paper in which you develop the model of group
care in which you would address this population including the various health
care professionals you would involve and what their roles would be. Address the
incidence of COPD in the nation as well as in your local community or state as
well as a definition of the disease. Be sure to identify the measures you will
assess for the baseline health assessment and for ongoing assessment. Discuss
some of the characteristics of the health education you will provide based upon
your knowledge of the disparities of vulnerable uninsured populations from your
text.

The following provides an outline for your development of
this case study:

I. Incidence
and Prevalence of COPD

A. National

B. Local
and/or State

II. Description
of Group Care Model

A. Community
Health Care Professionals and Roles

B. Methods
of Recruitment

III. Measurement
Tools

A. Baseline
Clinical Measures

B. Quality
of Life Measures

C. Participant
Satisfaction

IV. Benefits
and Barriers to the Community Model of Care

V. An
organized strategy to begin the process of seeking reimbursement (what would
you base reimbursement on, what health outcomes, etc.)