CORTEZ, Colo.—Southwest Memorial Hospital is launching a program that will use Cortez paramedics to perform wellness checks on patients to help cope with a shortage of doctors.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently rated Montezuma County deficient in having enough primary health-care providers.
Matthew Lindsay of the hospital says some people wait to seek health care, often resulting in a more costly visit to the hospital than if they had been checked sooner.
The program launching Feb. 1 isn’t meant to replace doctors or pharamacists. But it will allow residents in need to have their health checked without going to an emergency room.
The Cortez Journal reports () the paramedics will offer free wellness checks downtown and will do some scheduled in-home checks by doctor referral.
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Information from: Cortez Journal,
