INCREASING HEALTHCARE ACCESS
With a firm focus on healthcare quality, equity, and innovation, the University of Illinois System works to continually improve the health and wellbeing of the people of Illinois. When people and their communities are healthy, they thrive, further adding to the state’s economic vitality to benefit all.
Plus, healthcare careers abound, providing economic stability and professional satisfaction for thousands upon thousands of Illinoisans. The U of I System trains more medical and health professionals than any other institution in the state.
PATIENT VISITS SYSTEMWIDE IN FY2024
Serving communities in need
After a healthcare resource in Chicago’s Gage Park closed just before the pandemic, UI Health sprang into action. Since opening, the UI Health 55th & Pulaski Health Collaborative has served over 30,000 patients by helping them manage chronic conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes, and through education, cooking classes, support groups, and other resources. The UI Health at 55th and Pulaski Health Collaborative is a joint effort of the University of Illinois College of Medicine, UIC College of Applied Health Sciences, and the UI Health Mile Square Health Center, bringing together UIC’s health sciences colleges and local providers for health screenings and specialty services, as well as behavioral and mental health care.
The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services funded the launch of the collaborative through a $15 million Healthcare Transformation Collaboratives award.
Rural healthcare solutions
Adding well-trained people to the state’s healthcare workforce was the focus as our system leaders connected with peers at Logan County’s Lincoln Memorial Hospital. The 25-bed critical-access hospital provides inpatient, outpatient, home health, hospice, behavioral health and primary care services.
The conversation featured insight via rural health experts from the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford (RMED), part of the University of Illinois Chicago. Its Rural Medical Education Program is just one of the initiatives across our system that helps address patient-care gaps in the state. RMED graduates practice in 80 different Illinois communities, with 65% of practicing in towns of less than 50,000 people.
The U of I System’s universities and UI Health give learners experience with patients from all walks of life and exposure to the technology and innovation shaping the future of healthcare.
