indianapolis mental health Archives

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 Partners with Jane Pauley CHC for Integrated Health

Adult & Child Center is partnering with the Jane Pauley Community Health Center to provide primary care services within Adult & Child’s behavioral health offices at 8320 Madison Ave., Indianapolis. The new integrated health clinic offers a team approach to total health care for ages 13 and older. The clinic opened its doors on Tuesday, December 15, 2015.

Integrated Care is a team approach that helps individuals be their healthiest selves – mind and body – by receiving coordinated whole health services all at one location. The Jane Pauley at Adult & Child Integrated Health Clinic will provide a full range of primary care and behavioral health services to address an individual’s physical and mental health.

“We know that individuals with mental health needs are at greater risk of having co-occurring chronic physical illness,” said Allen Brown, Adult & Child CEO. “This is an opportunity for behavioral health staff to work collaboratively with primary care staff to consider how someone’s physical health may be impacting their mental health, and vice versa.”

Marc Hackett, Executive Director of The Jane Pauley Community Health Center, said, “We are committed to providing affordable, accessible, and high-quality primary care services. Our expansion of clinic sites demonstrates the community’s need for low-cost, convenient primary care. This unique behavioral health partnership with Adult and Child helps us better meet the community’s needs for total health.”

We are proud to be one of only a few partnerships in the State of Indiana to leverage the resources of a Federally Qualified Health Center, a Community Mental Health Center, and a Licensed Child Placement Agency to collectively improve the lives of people who experience physical health concerns, mental illness, addictions, and trauma.

About Adult & Child: Adult & Child is a non-profit agency with services that help people live healthier lives and reach their goals. We support people of all ages, impacting every area of life. Our behavioral health and child welfare staff partner with clients to help them set goals for mental wellness and self-sufficiency, and meet those goals.

About The Jane Pauley Community Health Center: Established in 2009, The Jane Pauley Community Health Center serves the local community, regardless of insurance or income, with an emphasis on integrating medical and behavioral health. The center also focuses on the management of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, cardiac disease and depression. They served 5,870 unique patients in 2012.

A&C offers FREE myStrength membership – the health club for your mind

Adult and Child Center is very excited to announce our partnership with myStrength to help the Greater Indianapolis community better track and self-manage their mental health. A&C has supported the mental health needs of the community since 1949 and we have long believed that education and prevention are critical aspects of mental health. This technology allows consumers, family members, and everyone else the opportunity to learn about and track your personal mental health trends in a manner which is tailored to your personal interests.

myStrength is like a personal trainer for your mental health – but FREE! And we are confident you will enjoy it.