Sanford Health, based in Sioux Falls, S.D., and Fargo, N.D., has a vision of "improving the human condition through exceptional care, innovation and discovery." This vision extends across not only eight states, but also across international borders to areas such as Ghana through its Sanford World Clinic program.
Sanford Health launched its World Clinic initiative in 2007 to provide pediatric and family care to communities in the U.S. and other countries that lack adequate primary care services. Sanford's goal is to build 20 clinics across the world within 10 years. So far, Sanford has established four clinics in Ghana and is on its way to completing the fifth in that country this summer.
Assessing the environment
The purpose of establishing these pediatric and family care clinics in the U.S. and abroad is to create a sustainable primary care system within three to five years of opening. To ensure the care will be sustainable, Sanford assesses the environment before building a clinic. The assessment addresses the community's financial and political stability, its health insurance infrastructure and the ability to recruit and hire local healthcare providers, according to Ruth Krystopolski, executive vice president for development and research at Sanford Health.
Sanford determined that Ghana's environment could support a sustainable primary care system due to its stable political situation and national health insurance program, among other factors. Under the program, individuals in Ghana can purchase health insurance from the government, which will then reimburse healthcare systems for services provided. As in the U.S., Sanford provides care for people both with and without insurance.
Adapting the "hub and spoke" model
Sanford uses a hub, spoke and micro-clinic model to deliver care to children and families. Under this model, a hub is a large primary care practice with four to six healthcare providers designed to serve a large volume of patients in an urban setting; typically a population of 200,000 or more warrants a hub, according to Jim Slack, vice president of Sanford World Clinics. A spoke is a smaller primary care practice designed to serve a rural population of roughly 75,000 to 125,000 people, and a micro-clinic is an extension of a clinic that serves more remote villages of 25,000 to 30,000 people.
Sanford has implemented the hub, spoke and micro-clinic model in Ghana. In January 2012, Sanford began operating a clinic in Cape Coast, Ghana, as a hub; the clinic sees more than 1,300 patients a week. The clinic diagnoses and treats common illnesses in the area, including malaria, diarrhea and respiratory health issues. In August, Sanford established a micro-clinic in Kojokrom, Ghana, and another hub clinic in Adenta, Ghana. From January to September 2012, these clinics treated more than 40,000 patients. By this summer, Sanford expects its clinics in Ghana will be able to treat approximately 400,000 patients annually.
By partnering with communities in Ghana to develop primary care practices, Sanford demonstrates its commitment to its vision of improving the human condition through exceptional care, innovation and discovery.
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Sanford Health launched its World Clinic initiative in 2007 to provide pediatric and family care to communities in the U.S. and other countries that lack adequate primary care services. Sanford's goal is to build 20 clinics across the world within 10 years. So far, Sanford has established four clinics in Ghana and is on its way to completing the fifth in that country this summer. Assessing the environment
The purpose of establishing these pediatric and family care clinics in the U.S. and abroad is to create a sustainable primary care system within three to five years of opening. To ensure the care will be sustainable, Sanford assesses the environment before building a clinic. The assessment addresses the community's financial and political stability, its health insurance infrastructure and the ability to recruit and hire local healthcare providers, according to Ruth Krystopolski, executive vice president for development and research at Sanford Health.
Sanford determined that Ghana's environment could support a sustainable primary care system due to its stable political situation and national health insurance program, among other factors. Under the program, individuals in Ghana can purchase health insurance from the government, which will then reimburse healthcare systems for services provided. As in the U.S., Sanford provides care for people both with and without insurance.
Adapting the "hub and spoke" modelSanford uses a hub, spoke and micro-clinic model to deliver care to children and families. Under this model, a hub is a large primary care practice with four to six healthcare providers designed to serve a large volume of patients in an urban setting; typically a population of 200,000 or more warrants a hub, according to Jim Slack, vice president of Sanford World Clinics. A spoke is a smaller primary care practice designed to serve a rural population of roughly 75,000 to 125,000 people, and a micro-clinic is an extension of a clinic that serves more remote villages of 25,000 to 30,000 people.
Sanford has implemented the hub, spoke and micro-clinic model in Ghana. In January 2012, Sanford began operating a clinic in Cape Coast, Ghana, as a hub; the clinic sees more than 1,300 patients a week. The clinic diagnoses and treats common illnesses in the area, including malaria, diarrhea and respiratory health issues. In August, Sanford established a micro-clinic in Kojokrom, Ghana, and another hub clinic in Adenta, Ghana. From January to September 2012, these clinics treated more than 40,000 patients. By this summer, Sanford expects its clinics in Ghana will be able to treat approximately 400,000 patients annually.
By partnering with communities in Ghana to develop primary care practices, Sanford demonstrates its commitment to its vision of improving the human condition through exceptional care, innovation and discovery.
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