Orange County has a strong health care community  that includes a nationally-ranked hospital system, an accredited School of Public Health, a federally qualified health center, a local public health department, a medical and dental school, and various private medical practices.  

Even though Orange County has a physician rate of 119.62 per 10,000 population, residents continue to report problems accessing health care services.  In addition to not having medical insurance, additional barriers include 

1. the concentration of health care resources in the southern part of the county
2. inadequate transportation systems in the central and northern part of the county 
3. language barriers
4. perceived discrimination (or racism) within health care facilities. 

• Orange County Health Department
• Chatham County Public Health Department,
• UNC Family Medicine
• Orange and Chatham Counties' area agencies on aging, Piedmont Health Services, the Triangle YMCA, and NC Cooperative Extension

NCCARE360 will allow health care organizations to:

• Easily refer and connect your clients to local services in the community.
• Track the outcome of the referrals and services delivered for your clients.
• Improve the health and well-being of your clients through increased partnership and collaboration with partners.  
• Measure the impact of your organization and the services you deliver.

To increase the use of NCCARE360 and reach more community members in need of services, OCHD proposes to hire a community health worker (CHW) to be a liaison between health care providers and community service providers with the goal of increasing participation in available chronic disease programming (e.g., Living Healthy with Diabetes peer support program, Medical Nutrition Therapy, Diabetes Self-Management Education Services, Diabetes Prevent Program).

We will also convene a community health collaborative of clinical and community-based organizations to increase the use of NCCARE360 to aid in service awareness and to establish a formalized referral network.

NCCARE360 is the first statewide network that unites health care and human services organizations with a shared technology that enables a coordinated, community-oriented, person-centered approach for delivering care in North Carolina. NCCARE360 helps providers electronically connect those with identified needs to community resources and allow for feedback and follow up. This solution ensures accountability for services delivered, provides a “no wrong door” approach, closes the loop on every referral made, and reports outcomes of that connection. NCCARE360 is available in all 100 counties across North Carolina.