I’m pleased to announce two developments that have been in the works for many months. First, read on to learn about our newest location – the reopening of our Manteca health center! It’s taken several months to prepare, update the site, and work with our health plan and regulatory partners to be approved to deliver services to both existing and new patients in the site, but we’re finally live this week! This was no small undertaking and I want to thank our team who has been diligent about moving the effort forward to ensure we could open and expand access in our growing south county.

Also exciting, you’ll read about our pending update to the Connect2Care virtual health platform, and how we’re expanding this growing service from what was initially launched as virtual primary care for SJ Health members during daytime hours into a virtual after-hours “immediate care” service for our broader community. This is a game changer for those faced with health needs when our health centers are closed, and for those who want to avoid a lengthy (and often unnecessary) wait to the ER. As with the Manteca reopening, the Connect2Care expansion has taken significant time and planning from many team members who are to be commended.

You’ll note that the Manteca health center and the Connect2Care launch reflect the growing need to ensure healthcare access is provided in many ways. Our patients have diverse needs and expectations which must be met in different ways. I’m proud that SJ Health and its own diverse team understand the importance of meeting our patients where they are and developing programs, services, and points-of-care to reach them and open pathways to health services. Connect2Care, for example, is unique in that it is a “home grown” solution and one that we’re able to customize and shape around our patients’ needs and the feedback we receive from them and other stakeholders. Many community health centers and provider groups outsource such virtual services to third-party vendors that offer a somewhat “one size fits all” platform – but SJ Health continues to be nimble as it brings forward community-based solutions.

With that in mind, I encourage you to continue to share your ideas for how we can serve our patients and our community more effectively as we endeavor toward healthier futures for those we serve.

SJ Health: Now Open in Manteca!

With an increasing number of patients, and the need for improved access to primary care in south San Joaquin County, SJ Health is pleased to be re-establishing its presence in the community of Manteca.

As of this week, our site at 283 Spreckles Avenue is reopened and available for appointments by existing SJ Health patients who live in the area, as well as community residents seeking convenient, quality care. Dr. Shailaja Munagala and Nurse Practitioner Harry Point Du Jour will be providing new and established patients the opportunity to develop a consistent primary care relationship for families and individuals from throughout Manteca and surrounding areas such as Lathrop, Escalon, Ripon, and others.

SJ Health’s Manteca site suspended operations early in the pandemic when volume slowed as many patients opted for telehealth or were hesitant to pursue preventive care visits. SJ Health’s leadership has consistently recognized that the need for healthcare access was still relevant in Manteca. According to Jeff Slater, grants manager for SJ Health, the health centers were able to make a compelling case to the board and to HRSA that the combination of SJ Health’s 4,000 current patients living in Manteca, over 3,000 residents without an established medical home, and enhanced reimbursement rates, all reinforced that the re-established site can by financially viable and, importantly, improve the county’s healthcare access. SJ Health’s exiting lease and the structural improvements that had already been made to the site also supported the relatively lower-cost opportunity to reopen the site quickly.

Over the next several months, marketing efforts to promote the availability of the Manteca health center and its clinical team will be a focus, and staff are working toward introducing the reopened site to community leaders, influencers, and residents who may have established medical homes elsewhere but are interested in a change.

If you are working with an SJ Health patient who lives in south San Joaquin County, be sure to mention our newly reopened site as an option for their next visit. We know many of our patients will appreciate the increasing flexibility and access points SJ Health is providing for timely, convenient care.

Connect2Care – “After-Hours” Immediate Care is Now Available

SJ Health’s newest patient health access program is already growing!

A few months ago, we highlighted the launch of Connect2Care, SJ Health’s virtual platform for healthcare visits for patients who may need timely access to care when their health issue doesn’t require an in-person visit. The program launched in November as a “soft” opening targeting SJ Health patient only and was met with resounding interest. Once patients learned of this convenient new option, Connect2Care appointment registrations and visits quickly ramped up with favorable responses by patients who appreciated having access to a virtual health platform coordinated by their own personal health center.

Now, SJ Health is moving Connect2Care to its next phase, and to a broader audience. Starting in April, Connect2Care will be extending its hours later into the evening and expanding its weekend hours to provide a convenient access point for SJ Health patients and the general community for immediate care needs that may arise when most primary care offices are closed.

“Connect2Care positions SJ Health to bring a practical and modern resource to our community’s healthcare delivery system, while also meeting a very relevant patient need in terms of timely and convenient access to care,” said Alice Souligne, chief operating officer for SJ Health and the proponent for Connect2Care’s development. “Many people, including our patients, encounter health issues when their primary point of care isn’t open. A local, ‘virtual immediate care’ program supports their needs and prevents unnecessary trips to the ER or delayed care.”

A significant aspect of the expansion of the Connect2Care’s hours will include outreach to the general community and coordination with health plans to make this “after-hours virtual immediate care” an extension of their provider network. Already, Health Plan of San Joaquin has signed on and will now allow their members assigned to other community primary care providers to access Connect2Care after-hours when their provider’s office is closed. For patients without insurance, or whose insurance opts not to include the service in its network, Connect2Care visits will continue to be available and affordable based on sliding scale charges.

In the coming months, SJ Health will be engaging advertising, social marketing, collaboration with payor partners, and community influencers (including community-based organizations, social services agencies, social/case workers, and others) to bring awareness to Connect2Care as “the” quality, convenient go-to source for virtual primary care by day and “after-hours virtual immediate care.” You’ll be hearing more about our progress ahead!

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