The King of Hearts Helps Others Follow a He...(o just have to learn to dowithout expens...),Health

"I try to focus on what can I do to be here longer. I have a child on the way, and I want to be able to offer something in return," says Cliff. While he does report some pre-gala jitters, he is looking forward to the chance to thank King in person. "I really don't know what else to say to him," he says. "Just 'thank you.'"

Cardiac care is just one realm of treatment outside the reach of the county's uninsured. For many, any medical care can be difficult to access outside the hospital emergency room. Of County's 200,000 emergency room visits each year, 30-35 percent are considered "non-urgent" cases.

"We're obviously always here to provide care, but we have to make the appropriate levels of care are available," says LAC+USC Health Network CEO Pete Delgado. "There's always a need for emergency room care; nobody would ever dispute that. What we're doing is providing access to clinics for primary and specialty care in neighborhoods. The Camino de Salud is the response we've developed to address a critical need. Appropriate care at an appropriate time is the target."

The LAC+USC Camino de Salud Network

"Meeting this need requires innovation," says Allen Miller, President of COPE Health Solutions, the company that manages the LAC+USC Camino de Salud Network. "We've found that a network of care, a true continuum of care, is the most effective means of helping patients learn health-maintenance skills. We work with them on their health needs primarily, but we are also providing social and vocational counseling. If someone learns to maintain health but is homeless or unable to work, all their efforts can come to nothing in the end."

At enrollment in the LAC+USC Camino de Salud Network, patients are assigned a primary health care clinic where th
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