Your SWCAHEC Health Update for October 1

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Pathways to Health

October 1, 2024

Did you Know?

Among Coloradans 65 and older, 95% were covered by public health insurance programs. Read the report.

Black Breastfeeding Week:
Ta’Sha’s Story

As a same-sex couple, my wife and I needed some assistance in getting pregnant. We ended up finding a donor and doing IVF through a fertility clinic. I went through many hormone injections and early morning appointments to create our daughter, Shemsi.

Read the Article

Photo: Unsplash-Nathan Dumlao

Feelings and facts; how do we establish ‘truth’ in perinatal care?

One of my children recently participated in an elective class titled “Adulting”. The students were invited to brainstorm topics they’d like to explore. Students proposed lessons on money management, cooking and my child’s suggestion– infant feeding.

Read the Article

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Funding (due 10/15) - Colorado Health Foundation has two upcoming funding opportunities: Advocacy and Justice with Communities of Color and Building a Pipeline of Primary Care Providers to Serve Diverse Communities
Funding (due 2/26/25) – Strategic prevention framework. The purpose of this program is to help reduce the onset and progression of substance misuse and its related problems by supporting the development and delivery of community based substance misuse and prevention and mental health promotion services.
Funding (applications accepted on an ongoing basis) – Hearst Foundations Health Grants. The Hearst Foundations provide grants for organizations working to address access to healthcare for high-need populations, healthcare professional shortages, evolving healthcare demands, and medical research.
Funding (applications accepted on an ongoing basis) – National Grassroots Organizing Program. Two-year unrestricted, general operating support grants of up to $30,000 per year, with an average grant size of $20,000 per year, to small, constituent-led grassroots organizations throughout the US and its territories.
Funding (applications accepted on an ongoing basis) – Economic Development Assistance. Funding to support the implementation of regional economic development, including public works projects and job creation projects. Past projects have included funding for water and wastewater projects in hospitals and healthcare facilities and road infrastructure projects that would support the expansion of healthcare facilities. Rural tribal and other underserved communities are of priority.
Funding (applications accepted on an ongoing basis) – Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Grants for innovative projects that are working to build health equity, ensuring that everyone has access to the care they need and all families have the opportunity to make healthier choices.

WEBINARS, TRAININGS AND CONFERENCES

Mark your calendar and plan to join The 2024 Colorado Food is Medicine Summit. This one-day event brings together policy and practice leaders from across the state to engage in insightful discussions and explore strategies to increase access to essential nutrition programs. Join us at The Summit and help continue this vital momentum! Registration details and cost to follow. Event Details: Wednesday, December 11, 2024, 8am-4pm, History Colorado Center
Virtual: The 3rd annual People’s Public Health Conference will take place October 25-27 online. Review last year’s program book for details on the speakers featured in 2023. This year’s registration can be found here.
Virtual: BHI/1302 Practice Learning Community, Topic - Integrating Behavioral Health in Rural Practices, Speaker – Lauren Hughes, Liz Frias. Friday, October 4th, 2024, 12pm to 1pm. Meeting Link: JOIN
Virtual: 10 week virtual cohort for white allies to dive deeper into equity work, begins October 14th. See attached pdf for QR code and this link for more info: https://www.invisibleparadigms.com/cohorts
Virtual: Better Caregiving for All - Caregiving for LGBTQ+ Adults with Dementia
Virtual: HCPF Annual Stakeholder Webinar. This event will review HCPF major initiatives for FY 2023-2024, priority initiatives for FY 2024-2025, and Public Health Emergency Unwind insights and opportunities going forward

NEWS & RESOURCES

National Immunization Awareness Month sponsored by the National Public Health Information Coalition (NPHIC) and observed every August, highlights the lifesaving benefits of vaccines. During the month, activities will raise awareness of the importance of vaccinating people of all ages against serious and sometimes deadly diseases. The awareness month also celebrates the successes of immunizations and educates Americans about vaccine safety and effectiveness. For more information, here is an article from TFAH.
Innovative Workforce Projects (IWP) was formed in 2021 to offer apprenticeship services as the sponsor and Related Technical Instruction (RTI) provider for a nationally-approved Registered Apprenticeship (RA) program through the US Department of Labor’s Office of Apprenticeship for the Medical Assistant occupation. Since then, IWP has entered into partnerships with 21 employers and other entities, including four in Colorado. RA is an employer-driven training model that combines paid on-the-job training (OJT) with concurrent classroom instruction. This “earn and learn” approach helps workers learn new skills and helps businesses recruit and retain a highly skilled workforce by growing their own talent. Businesses can choose to hire new workers or select current employees to join apprenticeship programs. Additionally, the Department of Labor has found that apprenticeship helps increase diversity in the healthcare workforce by expanding opportunities for skill attainment to traditionally underserved populations. Currently, IWP’s MA program is approved by two nationally accredited certifying bodies: American Medical Technologist (AMT), which issues the Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) certification, and the National Healthcareer Association (NHA), which issues the Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) certification. The IWP programs utilizes a “classroom” element that is completed online during off hours from the clinic, which allows for maximum flexibility to build program structures that best fit the needs of each employer. It eliminates any restrictions on minimum or maximum cohort sizes and offers rolling start dates that match the employer’s hiring patterns. This has been helpful in working across a broad spectrum of organization types, from large statewide healthcare systems to smaller clinics serving rural communities. While the apprentices are working their way through the material, they are offered support, guidance and encouragement from the IWP team, as well as updates on their progress. Biweekly updates are also provided to the employer (and other partners as applicable) regarding the status of all apprentices from their organization. For more information, please reach out to Jake McClelland at (702) 376-3892 or [email protected].
Ableism 101
The Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC) recently adopted the 2024 Recommendations and Guiding Principles for the Use & Management of Opioid Settlement Funds. These recommendations and principles provide guidance to recipients of opioid funds on how to best utilize these funds to maximize their impact in abating the opioid crisis. The COAC intends to build upon this guidance in the future.

Navigating Your First Year as a Nurse: Essential Tips for New Graduates

Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention:
Improving Blood Lead Testing and Reporting in Colorado’s Children

This is a new ECHO series designed to increase blood lead testing and reporting rates of providers across Colorado. This four-session series is designed for primary care providers who serve Medicaid and at-risk patients. Participants will learn about the common sources of lead in Colorado, how to screen patients and care for children with elevated blood lead levels. In addition to didactic teaching, each session offers case study scenarios and in-depth examinations of real-life situations that will be analyzed and discussed.

Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention:
Improving Blood Lead Testing and Reporting in Colorado's Children

Primary care providers, nurses and support staff

Four weekly ECHO sessions held virtually
Mondays 12:00 - 1:00 PM MT
October 7 - 28

Navigating Complexities in Youth Experiencing Suicidality

Youth with complex suicide prevention needs often seek services outside of the mental health system, but many providers report not having the skills or confidence to manage these complex cases. As a result, today’s youth may not be receiving the care they need. This ECHO series expands Partners for Children’s Mental Health’s (PCMH) first ECHO series, Pediatric Suicide Prevention: A Practical Care Pathway for Primary Care (not a prerequisite), by addressing barriers identified by providers that often arise when delivering care to suicidal youth. This advanced series builds off the Zero Suicide care pathway by educating participants about navigating family systems, using skills to manage acute emotional distress and supporting families with mental health resources.

Health care and behavioral health providers in outpatient primary care/integrated medical settings. Support staff in medical or behavioral health integrated/outpatient settings are welcome to register.

Three weekly ECHO sessions held virtually
Tuesdays 12:00 - 1:00 PM MT
October 22 - November 5

Save the Date Nov 7 - 8, 2024

The Managing Director of Partnerships and Development is responsible for fostering relationships and creating opportunities to support the Colorado Health Institute (CHI). This position requires advanced skills in developing funding strategies and ensuring CHI possesses the knowledge, relationships, and systems necessary for sustainable and strategic business growth that aligns with the organization’s mission, vision, and values.

The Managing Director of Partnerships and Development leads the planning and execution of revenue-generating and grant-seeking activities, formulates and executes funding strategies, and manages major contract development and grant proposals to achieve financial objectives.

This role reports to the CEO and is part of the senior leadership team.

Apply here