Join A&C in Celebrating National Health Center Week August 7-11
Staff, clients, friends, and community members are all invited to celebrate National Health Center Week with A&C from August 7 through August 11 on-site and on social media. A&C will feature a different topic of focus each day, which will involve education, agency highlights, and several giveaways: Monday, August 7: Youth Healthcare Tuesday, August 8: Patient Appreciation Wednesday, August 9: Healthcare for Individuals Experiencing Homelessness Thursday, August 10: Staff & Stakeholder Appreciation Friday, August 11: Minority Healthcare Rounding out the celebration will be a free community health fair on Friday, August 11 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the 8404 Siear Terrace office. Several community partners will be participating in the event, including NAMI Indiana and InteCare. Free snacks will be provided by Market Square Popcorn, and food will be available for purchase from Taste Budz Food Truck. Entertainment and activities will be provided by Good Moves Yoga and ZeeBee Karaoke. There will also be a free, interactive photo booth by Bhatta Boom Photo Booth. National Health Center Week is an annual celebration to raise awareness about the mission and accomplishments of America’s health centers, including the many innovative ways that health centers are providing high-quality health care, improving health outcomes, and narrowing health disparities. For A&C, this week is also an opportunity to strengthen local partnerships, increase community understanding of the organization’s mission and services, and ultimately encourage more folks to walk through A&C’s clinic doors on the first step of their journey toward comprehensive, compassionate healthcare.
Mental Health Organizations and Providers Applaud Indiana Lawmakers and Governor for Enacting Critical Mental Health Legislation Amidst Growing Need for Services and Dire Workforce Shortages
Today Governor Holcomb signed legislation into law HEA 1222 that would continue a critical grant program that has expanded access to urgently needed mental health and substance use disorder treatment services across the state of IN. The program is known as the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (or CCBHC) program. CCBHCs are designed to provide a comprehensive range of mental health and substance use disorder services to vulnerable individuals; with an emphasis on the provision of 24-hour crisis care, utilization of evidence-based practices, care coordination and integration with physical health care. In Indiana, there are currently 18 CCBHC grantees throughout the state that are recipients of federal grants designed to jumpstart the CCBHC program. Initial evaluation outcomes from Indiana CCBHC program have shown a 73% reduction of depression and a 93% reduction of clients hospitalized for mental health reasons. Now, HEA 1222 will build upon these successes. “Around the state our community providers have seen demand for services sky rocket” said Zoe Frantz, CEO for the Indiana Council of Community Mental Health Centers. “That’s why today’s announcement, of Governor Holcomb signing the CCBHC legislation into law is such incredible news for the continued work of these programs and the people they serve every day. Ultimately, this program gives providers more tools to ensure those in need, will get the help they need when they reach out.” Adult and Child Health (A&C) became a CCBHC in April of 2021 and, in the first 10 months, they’ve successfully supported 741 people in crisis through their CCBHC team. In addition to their 24/7 crisis response team, A&C Health has worked very closely with the Johnson County Sheriff’s Department to increase immediate access to mental health professionals to support police response to calls involving people in crisis. The two entities have found synergy in developing tandem training and crisis response programming to better support the needs of Johnson County. Under the leadership of Sheriff Burgess and Deputy Jim Engmark, nearly 100 law enforcement personnel have been trained in the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) programming, which is an innovative community-based approach to improve outcomes for people who experience mental illness when they have encounters with law enforcement. “Our heightened partnership with A&C provides a beneficial impact for law enforcement and our ability to change the potential outcome for people we encounter who are experiencing a mental health-related crisis. We’ve been able to deliver immediate support for Johnson County residents through A&C’s crisis teams and prevent unnecessary jail or ER placements,” said Deputy James Engmark of the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office. According to the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, CCBHCs have played a transformative role in addressing workforce shortages, creating a more integrated care delivery system, and ensuring providers meet quality metrics. Providers advocating for HEA 1222 see the legislation as an opportunity to provide better access and higher quality care through the state. Programs such as CCBHCs give community behavioral health agencies more tools successfully recruit and retain additional staff members as well as resources to ensure that consumers have access to critical, evidence based services.” “The legislation, HEA 1222, that was signed into law today requires the state to develop a plan for the expansion of the CCBHC program by November 1, 2022. The behavioral health community has already seen demonstrable results from the CCBHC program and looks forward to supporting the Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA) in developing a statewide infrastructure that meets the growing need for mental health services in Indiana,” said Steve McCaffrey, CEO of Mental Health America of Indiana. “We’re grateful for the leadership of Rep Cindy Ziemke, Rep Ann Vermilion, Sen. Mike Crider and the other members of the Indiana General Assembly, Department of Mental Health and Addiction, and Governor Holcomb for the passage of this critical mental health legislation.” For more information on CCBHCs, please visit the CCBHC Success Center, here. Media Contacts Zoe Frantz- 812-298-4533, [email protected] Tina Serrano- 317-882-5122, [email protected] Kelby Gaw-317-496-7193, [email protected] Adult & Child Health is an accredited nonprofit primary care, behavioral health, and social services provider with multiple locations in central Indiana. We strive for caring communities, where every child, adult and family have the opportunities they need to live healthy, happy, productive lives. For more information about Adult & Child Health programs, please contact Tina Serrano, Director of Strategic Initiatives, at 317-882-5122.
Adult & Child Health Welcomes New Doctors to Indianapolis Clinic
Adult & Child Health (A&C) is pleased to announce two new physicians joining the Garfield Park clinic. Dr. Joe Banks and Dr. Joanna Chambers are the newest physicians to join the growing clinic and bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the organization. They are the newest additions to the Garfield Park clinic located at 234E. Southern Ave., Indianapolis. As A&C continues to keep pace with the demand for primary care, Dr. Banks’ addition to the healthcare team is welcomed. “Dr. Banks brings a wealth of knowledge and understanding of our patients’ needs. I am very excited to welcome him to the team,” said Jeremy Tuterow, Practice Manager at Garfield Park. “He provides top-notch primary care services with a strong passion for providing community-based care focused on social determinant factors to bring the best outcomes possible for our patients.” Dr. Joe Banks is a primary care physician with his Doctorate of Osteopathic Medicine from Nova Southeastern University College of Medicine. He completed his residency in Family Medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in Jamaica Queens, New York City. He brings significant family medicine and primary care experience, working to treat Hoosiers across the state since 2008. Dr. Banks joined Adult & Child Health in at the end of 2021 and is currently accepting new patients. Additionally, A&C welcomes a new psychiatrist to the healthcare team. Dr. Joanna Chambers is a psychiatrist who began seeing Adult & Child Health patients in November. She graduated from Medical College of Georgia with her Doctorate of Medicine in 1996 and completed her residency in psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine. In addition to bringing a wealth of experience, she currently serves as an associate professor at Indiana University School of Medicine where she teaches Clinical Psychiatry. She is certified in Addiction Medicine and has a special interest in treating pregnant and postpartum women. She is President of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis and Dynamic Psychiatry Organization as well as a sitting member of many medical association boards. Recently, she has won the Residents’ Award for Teaching Excellence in 2020 from Indiana University and has received “Best Doctors Award” in 2010, 2011, and 2014. Incredibly active in the medical, academic, and research realms of medicine, we are happy to welcome her. Dr. Chambers is currently accepting new patients on Wednesdays. “We are very excited to welcome Dr. Chambers,” said Dr. Christine Negendank, Chief Medical Officer. “Her knowledge and strong reputation for quality care makes her a great addition to the Adult & Child Health team. As an active member of the medical community, we’re looking forward to the impact her care has on the surrounding neighborhoods and our patients who are seeking compassionate, empathetic care.” Both Dr. Banks and Dr. Chambers are accepting new patients. Appointments can be scheduled by calling the Adult & Child Health scheduling center at 1-877-822-5122. Adult & Child Health is an accredited nonprofit primary care, behavioral health, and social services provider with multiple locations in central Indiana. We strive for caring communities, where every child, adult and family have the opportunities they need to live healthy, happy, productive lives. For more information about Adult & Child Health programs, please contact Tina Serrano, Director of Strategic Initiatives, at 317-882-5122.
Adult & Child Health Receives Federal Funding to Expand and Optimize Telehealth Technology
Adult & Child Health (A&C) was awarded grant funding from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for healthcare technology to improve efficiency and access to care. Announced in early November, the FCC awarded Adult and Child Health and 74 other healthcare organizations grants through its COVID-19 Telehealth Program. As a part of the CARES Act, the COVID-19 program supports the efforts of health care providers to continue serving their patients by providing reimbursement for telecommunications services, information services, and connected devices necessary to enable telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Adult & Child Health was awarded $516,208 for laptops, tablets, Wi-Fi hot spots, a telehealth platform, and remote patient monitoring devices such as glucometers, otoscopes, stethoscopes, and blood pressure monitors. This allows providers to treat patients remotely and directly in the community from homeless shelters to schools – and to support treatment not only for COVID-19, but also for health care conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and chronic respiratory issues, among others. As a Federally Qualified Health Center Look Alike program, Adult and Child Health’s four family medicine clinics have been providing telehealth services since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Expansion of telehealth services funded by the FCC grant coincides with and complements a larger healthcare technology initiative as A&C moves to a new medical records system. In December 2021, A&C will switch to a new electronic medical record system (EMR), NextGen. The implementation of this industry leading EMR will lead to improved customer services, access, efficiency, and improved health outcomes. Working within NextGen, A&C providers will have access to a telehealth platform fully integrated within the patient medical records or seamless workflows and ease of use for both patients and staff. “We are very excited about this program. There is a lot of reach within this technology project. We’ll be able to better equip our patients to monitor their chronic conditions from home, our staff to provide high quality remote care. We’re also able to better support our community partners in homeless engagement projects and school-based telehealth services for parents,” said Kerri Lewis, Chief Information Officer at Adult & Child Health. “It’s very exciting because ultimately it improves the health of the patients who have serious chronic health conditions and need additional monitoring.” Adult & Child Health will utilize FCC grant funding to purchase new end user hardware, medical testing devices, waiting room kiosks, and remote monitoring technology. The NextGen EMR, with integrated telehealth capability, is scheduled to be implemented in early December and remote patient monitoring will be available for rollout in early 2022. Adult & Child Health is an accredited nonprofit primary care, behavioral health, and social services provider with multiple locations in central Indiana. We strive for caring communities, where every child, adult and family have the opportunities they need to live healthy, happy, productive lives. For more information about Adult & Child Health programs, please contact Tina Serrano, Director of Strategic Initiatives, at 317-882-5122.
