Unite Us and WakeMed Expand Collaboration to Scale and Support Whole-Person Care in North Carolina

RALEIGH, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Unite Us, the nation’s trusted technology partner for integrating health and community-based care, and WakeMed Health & Hospitals, a nationally recognized 970-bed not-for-profit health care system founded and based in Raleigh, N.C., are proud to deepen their collaboration to advance the health system’s Your Whole Health initiative.

“WakeMed continues to show what is possible when care teams are equipped with the right tools to look beyond clinical needs and take action,” said Taylor Justice, CEO and Co-Founder of Unite Us.

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WakeMed’s Your Whole Health program, which focuses on identifying and addressing social drivers of health (SDOH) that have a significant impact on health outcomes, will leverage a broader suite of Unite Us technology to more systematically identify, coordinate, and address non-clinical factors alongside clinical care needs, ultimately strengthening its whole-person health support for patients across the care continuum.

“Your Whole Health is about looking not only at the care we provide from a medical perspective, but what is contributing to a patient’s overall health picture,” said Theresa Amerson, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Population Health at WakeMed. “Integrated screening tools like those provided by Unite Us allow us to better understand how things like access to food, reliable transportation, and a safe place to live impact our patients’ lives—and streamline how we connect patients to trusted community-based resources.”

A Tiered Approach to Community-Based Care Support

WakeMed’s expanded use of Unite Us enables a tailored approach to patient support based on level of need:

• Public Resource Directory supports low-risk patient populations by allowing patients and community members to self-navigate to available local resources when needs arise. Care teams can gain deeper insights into community needs and better understand what types of services patients are searching for, view top-viewed and shared programs, and more.
• Screening Ingestion and Automated Resource Lists support rising-risk patients by translating existing SDOH screening data into personalized resource recommendations, delivered directly to the patient and their care team through After-Visit Summaries and Epic MyChart. Patients can then self-navigate to resources, or staff can choose to share a resource list or send a referral to community-based organizations (CBOs) who can help meet their needs.
• Unite Us Navigator supports high-risk patients by enabling closed-loop referrals to community-based organizations directly within WakeMed’s Epic EHR system, creating a more seamless experience for care teams and improving visibility into referral outcomes.

“WakeMed continues to show what is possible when care teams are equipped with the right tools to look beyond clinical needs and take action,” said Taylor Justice, CEO and Co-Founder of Unite Us. “By building this work directly into everyday care delivery, they are making it easier to connect people to meaningful support, strengthening coordination across settings, and helping ensure no need goes unseen or unmet.”

Improving Whole-Person Care in North Carolina

A leader in whole-person care, WakeMed continues to enhance its strategy by enabling patients with self-service access to local community resources, streamlining SDOH screening with automated resource recommendations, and natively embedding coordinated referral workflows directly within WakeMed’s Epic EHR system, which complements its existing use of Unite Us’ Closed-Loop Referral System and integrated Payments functionality. Together, these tools support WakeMed’s mission to provide compassionate, coordinated care that improves the health and well-being of the communities it serves.

Since launching the Your Whole Health program in July 2022, WakeMed has screened more than 300,000 unique patients, identifying the social drivers that influence overall health and well-being, and connecting individuals to meaningful community-based support through informed patient evaluations and care plans. The newly implemented Unite Us capabilities will enhance the work of WakeMed staff, reducing the burden on care teams to manually search for resources and follow up on referrals while enabling more seamless coordination of care.

Together, these tools help WakeMed—a Unite Us customer since 2019—continue advancing its mission and vision to be the provider of choice and preferred partner for quality health care, community health and whole-person care.

About Unite Us
Founded in 2013 by Military Veterans, Unite Us is the nation’s premier technology provider for integrating health and community-based care. Our advanced product suite is used to proactively coordinate services using data-driven insights, streamline referral and case management, and facilitate eligibility assessments and reimbursements across government, healthcare, health plans, and community organizations. The first of its kind, our closed-loop referral system prioritizes privacy and dignity and has integrated data and analytics tools used to measure impact, optimize programs, and shape policy. With over 1.7M services, we host the nation’s largest network of community-based health and economic services dedicated to improving whole-person health. Learn more at UniteUs.com and LinkedIn.

About WakeMed Health & Hospitals
Serving the community since 1961, WakeMed is a not-for-profit health care system founded and based in Raleigh, N.C. WakeMed exists to improve the health and well-being of our community by providing outstanding and compassionate care to all. WakeMed’s 973-bed system comprises a network of facilities throughout the Triangle area, including three full-service hospitals, a mental health & well-being hospital, eight emergency departments, a dedicated Children’s Hospital and Rehabilitation Hospital, two exceptional Trauma Centers—a Level I Trauma Center in Raleigh and a Level III Trauma Center in Cary, and more than 175 physician and physical therapy practice offices. WakeMed’s mission-driven team includes more than 12,800 employees, 1,300 volunteers, and 1,300 affiliated physicians along with a network of 900+ primary care and specialty providers with WakeMed Physician Practices—all representing the best minds and the biggest hearts and the finest quality in health care and community health. For more information, visit www.wakemed.org or follow WakeMed on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.