Bridging the Digital Divide

Grantee: International Community Health Services
Timeframe: January 2021 – December 2021 | Amount: $22,500

ICHS will help bridge the digital divide by providing tablet devices to participants in its PACE program, allowing them to access services remotely. The grant will also fund a technology coordinator to provide technical assistance.

With Nimble Grant funding, ICHS will address the digital equity divide by purchasing 30 tablet devices with one-year data connectivity subscriptions and supporting a temporary staff position (15 hours per week for three months) who will introduce and support these devices amongst participants. The tablets will allow ICHS PACE program participants to access:

• Telehealth services, include medical, social, and therapy needs, as appropriate;
• Virtual activities and exercise including Tai Ji, games, or recreational activities;
• Video communication capabilities with their loved ones or friends.

The ICHS PACE program has physicians, nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, and recreational therapists on staff to deliver services and programming through these devices.

The program already has a Recreation Therapy Supervisor and an assistant on staff. ICHS will begin recruitment for the proposed temporary staff. The Recreation Therapy Supervisor and assistant will ensure rapid implementation by overseeing the implementation of the tablets until the position is filled.

The project is composed of two phases. The first, Implementation, comprises the first month, during which the program will submit the order for the tablets. Within the first two months ICHS will hire and on-board the temporary staff for the program and distribute the tablets to program participants. Beginning in month three, the temporary staff will begin working directly with program participants, providing direct support and training. By the end of month three ICHS will begin offering live and recorded activities and services to the participants over the devices.