Meritus Health Care Caller Program published in peer-reviewed journal

Initiative combats loneliness, which has been linked to poor health outcomes

Leaders with a Western Maryland health system have published an article in a peer-reviewed journal highlighting a program designed to upend loneliness and social isolation in their community.

The Meritus Health Care Caller program was implemented in November 2021 to combat the negative effects of a solitary lifestyle, including an increased risk of depression, anxiety, and other health issues.

“Loneliness and social isolation have been shown to impact life expectancy as much as smoking, obesity and physical inactivity,” said Maulik Joshi, Dr.P.H., president and CEO of Meritus and one of the paper’s authors. “Meritus Health has set out to make sure that loneliness doesn’t take its toll on our community.”

The paper by Joshi; Ethan Feldmiller, startup program manager for the proposed Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine; Lynnae Messner, director of outpatient care management; and Sridhar Rao Gona, pharmacy informatics and research, was published in the September/October 2024 edition of the Journal for Healthcare Quality.

What is the Care Callers program?

Care Callers uses 81 volunteers and two staff to call 350 health system patients who have indicated they are lonely. Each week, the patient and caller converse for 15 minutes to a half hour.

The paper used data current to July 2023, but the most recent statistics show that 95% of the patients in the program report feeling less lonely after four months. Since its inception, more than 700 patients have participated.

In fiscal year 2024, Care Callers and patients spoke for 185,915 minutes.

And the health system does not intend to slow down. Leaders plan to use what they’ve learned so far to continue addressing inequities and disparities in the community and region.

“As anchor organization for the community, we take responsibility for optimizing health outcomes for our neighbors,” Joshi said. “That’s why we’ve implemented Care Callers and other initiatives, not just because it serves a need in our growing community, but also because it’s the right thing to do.”

To read the article, click here. To learn more about the Meritus Health Care Callers program, visit www.MeritusHealth.com/carecallers.