Health Services, Inc. Special Projects

Participation in the HRSA-Sponsored Bureau of Primary Health Care Health Disparities Collaborative

  1. The Health Area of Focus:


    2. The Health Disparities Collaborative was developed to help primary health care practices change to improve the health care provided to patients and eliminate health disparities. The first collaborative began in 1998 and focused on diabetes. Since then the Health Disparities Collaborative has spread to cover multiple chronic illnesses such as:

    1. Cardiovascular disease
    2. Depression
    3. Asthma
    4. Cancer


    The Health Area of Focus for the Health Disparities Collaborative at Health Services Inc. at the present time is Diabetes. The purpose of this collaborative is to translate research evidence into practice and to improve the health status of underserved people where diabetes has reached an epidemic. The states involved in the Southeast Health Disparities Collaborative include: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The total number of Health centers in the Southeast Health Disparities Collaborative is approximately 169.

    1. The Vision of Health Disparities Collaborative:

      2. Reduce disparities in health outcome for the poor, minorities, and other underserved people.
    2. Goals of Health Disparities Collaborative:

      3. Decrease or delay complications of disease, decrease the economic burden for patients and communities, and improve access to quality chronic disease care for underserved populations.
    3. Mission of Health Disparities Collaborative:

      4. To expand access to high quality, culturally, linguistically competent primary and preventive care for uninsured and underinsured Americans.


  2. Successful Changes in Practice that was Implemented at Health Services, Inc.


    3. An example of the Successful Change in Practice for Health Services, Inc. is the development and maintaining of a registry for all of our diabetic patients at the Autaugaville Family Health Center located in Autaugaville, Alabama. The Autaugaville site for the past year has served as our Population of Focus or POF.


For more information visit their website (Health Disparities National Reporting) at www.hdnr.org