Category Archives: History

History of Project Access in Wichita In 1998, Paul Uhlig, MD, a fourth generation Kansas physician and a cardiothoracic surgeon, set the wheels in motion to improve access to health care for the 50,000 uninsured living in Wichita-Sedgwick County. The … Continue reading →

A Community Partnership Project Access’ success lies in its relationship-building and thinking creatively to solve community health problems. Everyone was asked to be involved in the solution — physicians, hospitals, funders, state, city and county governments, pharmacists and community health … Continue reading →

The Physicians: When the Medical Society of Sedgwick County (MSSC) took Project Access under its wing, it ensured that there would be an adequate number of doctors available for participation. In 1999, as Project Access became operational, Dr. Michael Bates … Continue reading →

The Hospitals: Because many uninsured people go to local emergency departments for medical needs that often should be treated and managed in a primary care setting, much of the escalated costs for care for the uninsured are borne by the … Continue reading →

The Clinics: For years community clinics (FQHCs and privately-funded clinics) had to negotiate with doctors and hospitals to get treatment and diagnostic testing for their uninsured patients. It was a hit-or-miss approach.  Clinicians often called the same few physicians and … Continue reading →

The Funders: Early in the planning process of Project Access, Central Plains Regional Health Care Foundation leaders approached the president of the United Way of the Plains. He was impressed with the Project Access model; immediate interest was sparked. However, … Continue reading →

The Government: Prior to the launch of Project Access, a missing component was prescription medication funding. This would be the role for local government leaders, who agreed to provide an annual commitment totaling $500,000 for enrollees’ prescription medication needs. Funding … Continue reading →

The Pharmacists: The involvement of pharmacists began when the MSSC contacted Prescription Network of Kansas (PNK), a pharmacy benefits management company. PBMs manage the prescription portion of a health plan either directly for an employer, managed care organizations such as … Continue reading →

Evaluating Results Project Access bears an obligation to a whole community of people: patients, funders, health care providers, governments, taxpayers— to ensure that funding is spent efficiently and effectively. To ensure the program’s goals are attained, comprehensive evaluations are routinely … Continue reading →

The Prognosis Project Access is a successful program that has reached maturity. The organization has since launched additional initiatives including two significant care management programs—and leveraged the community partnerships established through Project Access to get them started.