Moving To The Future

Dr. Joy Alonzo with the Texas A&M Health Science Center was on hand to talk with Milam County residents on Thursday, Jan. 23, about the possibility of new health care options in the county. The Moonshot initiative, a $10 million grant through Blue Cross Blue Shield, is funding a research project to find a solution to the loss of health care services in rural communities across the country. Alonzo and her team chose Milam County as a pilot project for several different things that will help with emergency response in the county. She said they chose the county due to the recent closure of the hospitals and its proximity to College Station. Alonzo said Texas has lost about 15 critical access hospitals in the last year. The project is working to establish a volunteer EMT corps across the county to respond when all of the ambulances are out on call. The grant will fund a phone app and medical supply bags for the responders. They are hoping to get 30 volunteers for this project. This will help extend the “golden hour” for patients. It will also establish after hours care and assessment through remote telemedicine stations that will allow patients to see a doctor and get medicine without going to urgent care or the hospital. Alonzo said she is working to get the first station prototype up and running and it will likely be placed in Rockdale. The study will run for two years and then the county can choose what to do from there. If you would like more information about the project, go to moonshotp2.tamu.edu