ConnectionsTENNESSEE PRIMARY CARE ASSOCIATION

4th Quarter 2009 • Volume 22 • Issue 4

State Legislators Recognized for Supporting Health Care Efforts

The Tennessee Primary Care Association recently awarded Representative Joe Pitts with the William V. Corr Award of Excellence at the annual President’s Dinner.

“Representative Pitts is a champion for community health centers and true supporter of our mission to serve all Tennesseans” said Kathy Wood-Dobbins, CEO of the Tennessee Primary Care Association. “He genuinely cares about all Tennesseans and their ability to access quality health care services.”

Representative Pitts has been a supporter of Community

Health Centers for several years. He is a staple at every event Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center holds, as well as important legislative hearings concerning TennCare and the safety net funding.

The Rural Health Association of Tennessee awarded Representative Kevin Brooks with their Legislator of the Year Award for 2009. This award was presented to Representative Brooks for his exceptional service in the Tennessee Legislature to the citizens of Tennessee in 2009. Representative Brooks is keenly noted for his work in preserving the Coordinated School Health program in Tennessee.

As a House member of the 105th and 106th General Assemblies, Representative Brooks was Vice Chair of House Children and Family Affairs Committee, member of the House Education Committee, member of the House Finance, Ways and Means Committee, among others.

Perry County Medical Center (also known as Three Rivers Community Heath Group) celebrated its 30 Year Anniversary with a commemorative dinner recently. Members of the Board of Directors, PCMC staff and their spouses attended along with State Senator Roy Herron. Senator Herron presented Barbara Heady, CEO of PCMC with a Senate Proclamation, stating ‘The Tennessee General Assembly honors and recognizes the staff, nurses, physicians and administrators of Perry County Medical Center for their contribution to the health and well being of this state’s citizens, and their unrivaled dedication to quality patient care. Whereas, since opening its doors November 26, 1979, Perry County Medical Center, a valued member of the Tennessee Primary Care Association, has stood as a bastion of dedicated medical service to all in need, and it is wholly fitting that the institution be recognized upon the celebration of this momentous occasion’. Governor Phil Bredesen sent a letter

congratulating Perry County Medical Center for this milestone on behalf of the citizens of the state. The Governor commended everyone for their hard work and dedication, stating “You have set an example for others to follow.”Chairman Jim Azbill presented Dr. Alex Johnson with a commemorative watch marking his retirement from the medical center and honoring his 25 years of service as Medical Director. Chairman Azbill also rewarded CEO Barbara Heady and Dana Tatum, Office Manager, for their 30 years of dedicated service. (See photo right)

Perry County Medical Center Celebrates 30 Years of Service

From the Chief Executive

Officer’s DeskKathy Wood-Dobbins

These are hard times. Almost all of us know someone who has been affected by the recession, whether it’s a family member

or neighbor who lost his or her job or another storefront boarded up down the block. After a year as tough as 2009, I can tell you that health centers have seen the impact, up close and personal. Quite often, the patients visiting Tennessee’s health centers are there for the first time because they lost their insurance along with their job. Or, they simply cannot afford insurance anymore.

At Community Health Centers, the insured and uninsured alike receive the same excellent quality of care. There are no “haves” or “have nots.” People are treated with care and respect and, best of all, receive a full range of primary care services under one roof. As President Obama recently noted, “For [health centers], health care isn’t just about diagnosing patients and treating illness –- it’s about caring for people and promoting wellness. It’s about emphasizing education and prevention, and helping people lead healthier lives so they don’t get sick in the first place.”

And people need to stay healthy, especially during times of economic hardship. That is why the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), signed into law one year ago, invested in a stronger safety net. Since the ARRA funding was allocated last spring, health centers have been able to expand their reach to 1.8 million patients and more than 600,000 uninsured people. That means fewer people crowding hospital ERs, where the cost of care is more expensive. If we treat people before they get sick we can save money as well as lives. A recent study by George Washington University revealed that if health centers were expanded to accommodate an additional 20 million patients, the health care system would save $212 billion over the next decade.

ARRA investment in our nation’s health centers has shown in just one year what could be accomplished with longer-term health reform. Access to primary care must be part of the prescription. And it’s needed now. Total visits for uninsured patients at Community Health Centers increased 21 percent over the last year, according to the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC), and we’ve seen a similar jump at health centers in Tennessee. ARRA was the right medicine at the right time for the millions of people who need health care and for the health centers that provide that care. But continued investment in both access and coverage is needed to make a lasting difference.

In Tennessee, the stakes are higher than ever. The stimulus funding will be gone by the end of this year. That, coupled with looming state budget cuts to TennCare will sorely challenge our ability to meet growing health care needs in our communities..

We want to thank both of Tennessee’s United States Senators and Members of Congress from Tennessee along with the members of the Tennessee General Assembly, and Governor Bredesen and his Administration for their continued support of health centers and the health care safety net. We also look forward to working with them to address these problems and work to increase access to health care homes for all Tennesseans.

Rural Medical Services has shown a great commitment to the Promotora model and a desire to try innovative new strategies to reach the communities they serve. In recognition of their continued efforts, they were awarded the 2009 Golden Lantern Award from Migrant Health Promotion at the East Coast Migrant Stream Forum in Atlanta, GA.

Rural Medical Services, Inc., based out of Newport, TN, started their first Promotor(a), or Lay Health, program in 2002. This year they started two new Promotor(a) programs - a theater program and a doula program within the local Hispanic community.

The theater program uses creative performance techniques as a fun and interactive way to make health information more accessible for all language and literacy levels. They even wrote a song about the H1N1 flu.

Rural Medical Services has also recognized a great need for education and support of their many perinatal patients. In response, they have recently received a federal Enabling Services grant to start a doula program in which Promotoras will provide prenatal education and, in some cases, birth support to their OB patients. The program will serve one of Rural Medical Services’ largest patient populations with the aim to increase early prenatal care and reduce low birth weight deliveries.

Rural Medical Services was also recently named a winner in the fourth annual NextGen® Best Practice Awards

competition. The award – given by NextGen Healthcare, a wholly owned subsidiary of Quality Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: QSII) and a provider of ambulatory healthcare and connectivity solutions – honors clients who have demonstrated exemplary use of the NextGen ambulatory solutions suite. Rural Medical Services won the “small practice” category, which focused on medical practices with less than 10 physicians on staff.

Since implementing the NextGen® EPM (Enterprise Practice Management) product in October 2006 and NextGen EHR (Electronic Health Record) product in January 2007, the federally qualified community health center (FQCHC) has experienced operational benefits like improved staff efficiency and more accurate billing. These benefits have helped increase the organization’s total patient care revenue by an average of more $86,000 annually and saved RMS more than $75,000 a year in staff and practice management costs.

Most importantly, the use of technology has enabled RMS to enhance patient care. For example, all providers can track medical tests to verify that results have been received. Other patient care benefits include:

• RMS increased patient visits by more than 4,000 in 2007 and an additional 3,100 in 2008.

• Physicians can access patients’ medical records at any of the practice’s five locations or in remote locations. As a result, the organization has improved the quality of care and minimized the risk of medication errors.

• RMS can now provide after-hours care for acute illnesses to all patients regardless of which clinic they typically visit.

Rural Medical Services, Inc. Awarded Two Honors

Three Rivers Community Health-Hickman officially opened the doors to a new medical facility the week of October 19, 2009. The ribbon cutting was October 20 and those in attendance included US Congressman Lincoln Davis; State Senator Doug Jackson; State House Representative David Shepard, Bobby Goode, State Director of USDA Rural Development, County Mayor Steve Gregory; Three Rivers Group CEO Barbara Heady; Board Chairman Jim Azbill and other Board Members; Chamber of Commerce officials; and other state and local leaders. Area residents turned out to tour the facility, meet the physicians, medical providers and staff and attend the open house reception.

Three Rivers Community Health Group Holds Grand Opening of Hickman County Clinic

Women’s Wellness and Maternity Center (WWMC) celebrated 25 years in Monroe County with an open house in December.

WWMC has provided maternity and women’s health care to mothers, babies and families of Monroe and surrounding counties for a quarter of a century. This historical first freestanding birth center in Tennessee has had many milestones over the years. WWMC has won several national awards during its tenure including the Ford Foundation Innovations Award in 1991, the National Healthy Babies Award for helping to reduce infant mortality in Monroe County, and the Good Housekeeping/Wyeth Foundation Award for Women’s Health Provider in 2004.

WWMC continues to be an innovative women’s care provider in this community, adding new services that have been shown to improve the health of both mothers and babies. A new renovation and

addition to the facility opened last year to enhance the comfortable women-centered atmosphere. The addition adds a garden birth suite with birth room and tub room for comfort during labor.

Centering Pregnancy group prenatal care has been added to the range of services offered at the center with a renovated meeting room.

“Group care has been shown to reduce numbers of low birth weight and preterm babies by educating and empowering families about healthy pregnancy. All mothers benefit from the support of group care,” said Jill Alliman, Center Director.

An evening well child clinic continues to offer families convenient after hours well child care. Women of all socioeconomic and educational backgrounds from their local communities and from over an hour away come to the Center to enjoy family centered high quality care.

WWMC has admitted 3,263 women in labor at either Women’s Wellness Center or Sweetwater Hospital.

Dr. Levin, Medical Director and founder of WWMC said, “We plan to be around for the next 25 years, to continue providing excellent care to Monroe County and east Tennessee women and their families.”

In early November, over 400 Health Center oral health providers, administrators, and their supporters descended on Nashville for the 2009 National Primary Oral Health Conference. The annual conference is coordinated by the National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA) through a Cooperative Agreement with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). This year’s event focused on best practices to address the unique needs in providing oral health care services to low-income and disadvantaged populations served by Health Center Programs.

Christi Granstaff, Deputy Director of the Tennessee Primary Care Association, spoke to the group about dental services in Community Health Centers. The Tennessee Primary Care Association and the Mathew Walker Comprehensive Health Center sponsored a tour of the Mathew Walker

Health Center that was attended by the HRSA Chief Dental Officer, Dr Jay Anderson, the current ADA President, Dr. Ron Tankersly, and the HRSA Deputy Administrator Dr. Marcia Brand. Mathew Walker’s Dental Director, Dr. Tommy Dorsey, and CEO, Jeff McKissack, gave an informative tour and allowed participants to exchange information and ideas to help them better manage their Health Center oral health programs.

Women’s Wellness and Maternity Center Celebrates 25th Anniversary

The Rural Partnership Places Two Stipend Recipients at Health Centers

Working with Tennessee’s rural and underserved communities, The Rural Partnership (TRP) placed two stipend recipients at Lifespan Health in Savannah and Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center in Nashville. Dr. Anjeanette Hall, MD, Family Medicine, completed her residency training at East Tennessee State University’s Johnson City Family Practice program. She joined Lifespan in the fall of 2009.

“The aspect of rural medicine that I value the most is the ability to educate my patients about their health and to help them as they take ownership of decisions affecting their own health. I’ve always felt that I would be most comfortable practicing in a small community with patients who have obstacles to accessing health care,” Hall said Janie McGinley, CEO of Lifespan, said that Dr. Hall made an immediate impact on the clinic.

“We appreciate the passion Dr. Hall has for her patients and the spirit with which she has embraced the community. Her patients adore her.” McGinley said.

Dr. Oba Hollie, MD, Internal Medicine, completed his residency training at The University of Tennessee’s Baptist Hospital program in Nashville. He began working at Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center in the fall.

“There is a large segment of the U.S. population that is overlooked by the healthcare system because of being uninsured, underinsured, or not having access to good providers. I want to do my part and serve an underserved community,” Hollie said. Jeff McKissack, CEO of Matthew Walker, said patients understand Dr. Hollie’s approach to medicine and look forward to seeing him.

“Dr. Hollie demonstrates his desire to serve the community and to share his gifts during each encounter. Our patients know when you care,” McKissack said.

Both McGinley and McKissack worked with TRP to recruit Dr. Hall and Dr. Hollie. The availability of the Tennessee Residency Stipend helped these physicians with student loans and other debt.

“We were not only happy to play a role in the recruitment of Dr. Hall and Dr. Hollie, but are pleased to be the workforce partner of the Tennessee Primary Care Association to improve access to care. With the addition of these physicians into our rural and underserved communities, more patients will have access to quality and compassionate healthcare,” said Cindy Siler, CEO of The Rural Partnership.

“We already have several successful examples of how to provide this kind of integrated care. Health care systems like Cherokee Health, Intermountain Health, and the Veterans Administration have all successfully included mental health into their primary care systems. Now the challenge is to spread these models, especially to smaller practices that may not have the same experience dealing with mental health and substance abuse problems.”

- Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services

A Grand ‘Ole Time for Oral Healthby Terry Hobbs, NNOHA Project Director

With a grant awarded by the Tennessee Primary Care Association (TPCA ) Cherokee Health Systems Broadway Homeless Clinic conducted a H1N1 Health Education Event on Saturday, November 14, in Knoxville, TN.

Booths included hand-washing, demonstrated by having each participant wash their hands with tempera paint, wearing Latex gloves, and closing their eyes. The results showed large amounts where surfaces of the hands were missed. All were surprised. A bar of soap was given afterwards.

Other stations included nutrition, prevention of H1H1, signs and symptoms, how to reduce exposure, (cover your cough, etc.) emergency warning signs, modes of transmission, how to treat, and when to come to the clinic.

2009 TPCA Board of Directors

Karen Guinn – President Homeless Health Care

Center

Julia Pearce - SecretaryCherokee Health Systems

William Jackson - Treasurer

Memphis Health Center

Jeff McKissack – President Elect

Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health

Center

Burt Waller – Past President

Christ Community Health Services

Denise BondEast Jackson Family

Medical Center

Linda BuckRural Health Services

Consortium

Barbara HeadyThree Rivers Community

Health

Mary HeinzenHardeman Co. Community

Health Center

Bill HicksSouthside and Dodson Ave.

Health Center

Ira JonesUnited Neighborhood

Health Services

James LovettMountain People’s Health

Councils

Bonnie PilonUniversity Community

Health Services

Brian SmithCHOTA Community

Health Services

Larry StaniferRural Medical Services,

Inc.

Lisa TerryPrimary Care and Hope

Clinic

Evelyn VaillencourtStewart County

Community Medical Center

W. Mark WattDayspring Family Health

Center

TENNESSEE PRIMARY CARE A S S O C I A T I O N

416 wi l son p ike c i rc lebrentwood, tn 37027

615-329-3836

www.tnpca.org

NON-PROFITOrganizationU.S. Postage

P A I DNashville, TNPermit #1097

Connecting Communities Who CareThe Tennessee Primary Care Association improves access to primary health care through

leadership, advocacy, and support, as the voice of community health centers.

To view the Association Calendar, please visit www.tnpca.org and click on CalendarPlease send articles, press releases and other content to Jackie Crumley at jackie@tnpca.org

The “Be in the Know” H1N1 information outreach event at ProHealth in Franklin, TN was a success. The class was provided with the Tennessee Primary Care Association’s support. On November 21, 2009 Dr. Lori MacDonald presented a seminar on the H1N1 Influenza virus and Assist Tennessee interpreted for the Spanish speaking attendees.